Search Publications

One million cubic kilometers of fossil ice in Valles Marineris: Relicts of a 3.5 Gy old glacial landsystem along the Martian equator

Le Mouélic, Stéphane; Le Deit, Laetitia; Mège, Daniel +6 more

Self-consistent landform assemblages suggest that Valles Marineris, the giant valley system that stretches along the Martian equator, was entirely glaciated during Late Noachian to Early Hesperian times and still contains huge volumes of fossil ice. Some of these glacial landform assemblages are illustrated here, with representative examples selec…

Friction and dynamics of rock avalanches travelling on glaciers

De Blasio, Fabio Vittorio

Rock avalanches travelling on glaciers often exhibit effective friction coefficient lower than those on a rocky terrain. After briefly considering some data of rock avalanches on glaciers, the physics of sliding of solid objects on icy surfaces is reviewed, and a model is put forward for the mechanics of rock avalanche sliding on ice accounting fo…

A hydrological analysis of terrestrial and Martian gullies: Implications for liquid water on Mars

Hobbs, S. W.; Paull, D. J.; Clarke, J. D. A.

Understanding the role and amounts of liquid water involved in Martian gully formation is critical in studies of the Martian hydrosphere and climate. We performed hydrological analyses using the Manning and Darcy-Weisbach equations in order to infer flow velocities and discharge rates from channels at two gully sites in Noachis Terra, Mars. The re…