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Assessing the mineralogy of the watershed and fan deposits of the Jezero crater paleolake system, Mars
Mustard, John F.; Goudge, Timothy A.; Head, James W. +2 more
We present results from geomorphic mapping and visible to near-infrared spectral analyses of the Jezero crater paleolake basin and its associated watershed. The goal of this study is to understand the provenance of the sedimentary deposits within this open-basin lake using a source-to-sink approach. Two fan deposits located within the basin have d…
Strong coronal channelling and interplanetary evolution of a solar storm up to Earth and Mars
Dumbović, Mateja; Temmer, Manuela; Vršnak, Bojan +15 more
The severe geomagnetic effects of solar storms or coronal mass ejections (CMEs) are to a large degree determined by their propagation direction with respect to Earth. There is a lack of understanding of the processes that determine their non-radial propagation. Here we present a synthesis of data from seven different space missions of a fast CME, …
Widespread surface weathering on early Mars: A case for a warmer and wetter climate
Mangold, Nicolas; Bibring, Jean-Pierre; Poulet, François +2 more
Early Mars (>3 Ga) underwent aqueous alteration as evidenced by fluvial/lacustrine morphologies and the recent discovery of widespread hydrous clays. Despite compelling evidence for diverse and localized aqueous environments, the possibility for sustained liquid water globally on the martian surface and over geological timescales is still highl…
The Martian atmospheric ion escape rate dependence on solar wind and solar EUV conditions: 1. Seven years of Mars Express observations
Barabash, Stas; Nilsson, Hans; Holmström, Mats +3 more
More than 7 years of ion flux measurements in the energy range 10 eV-15 keV have allowed the ASPERA-3/IMA (Analyzer of Space Plasmas and Energetic Ions/Ion Mass Analyzer) instrument on Mars Express to collect a large database of ion measurements in the Mars environment, over a wide range of upstream solar wind (density and velocity) and radiation …
Classification and analysis of candidate impact crater-hosted closed-basin lakes on Mars
Mustard, John F.; Goudge, Timothy A.; Head, James W. +2 more
We present a new catalog of 205 candidate closed-basin lakes contained within impact craters across the surface of Mars. These basins have an inlet valley that incises the crater rim and flows into the basin but no visible outlet valley, and are considered candidate closed-basin lakes; the presence of a valley flowing into a basin does not necessi…
A strong seasonal dependence in the Martian hydrogen exosphere
Bertaux, Jean-Loup; Chaufray, Jean-Yves; Clarke, John T. +2 more
Hubble Space Telescope and Mars Express observed unexpected rapid changes in the Martian hydrogen exosphere involving a decrease in scattered Lyman α intensity in fall 2007 (solar longitude, Ls = 331°-345°). These changes detected were speculated to be a combination of seasonal variation and/or dust storms and lower atmospheric dynamics…
Variability of the Martian thermosphere during eight Martian years as simulated by a ground-to-exosphere global circulation model
Forget, F.; López-Valverde, M. A.; García-Comas, M. +3 more
Using a ground-to-exosphere general circulation model for Mars we have simulated the variability of the dayside temperatures at the exobase during eight Martian years (MY, from MY24 to MY31, approximately from 1998 to 2013), taking into account the observed day-to-day solar and dust load variability. We show that the simulated temperatures are in …
Surface morphology of fans in the high-Arctic periglacial environment of Svalbard: Controls and processes
Hauber, Ernst; Kleinhans, Maarten G.; de Haas, Tjalling +2 more
Fan-shaped landforms occur in all climatic regions on Earth. They have been extensively studied in many of these regions, but there are few studies on fans in periglacial, Arctic and Antarctic regions. Fans in such regions are exposed to many site-specific environmental conditions in addition to their geological and topographic setting: there can …
Mars' water vapor mapping by the SPICAM IR spectrometer: Five martian years of observations
Montmessin, Franck; Trokhimovskiy, Alexander; Bertaux, Jean-Loup +4 more
The SPICAM IR instrument on the Mars Express mission continuously observes the water vapor in the martian atmosphere starting from 2004 in the 1.38-µm spectral band. The water vapor column abundance is retrieved from nadir observations to characterize its spatial, seasonal and interannual variations. A reference set of SPICAM water vapor col…
Variability of the hydrogen in the martian upper atmosphere as simulated by a 3D atmosphere-exosphere coupling
Lopez-Valverde, M. A.; Forget, F.; Chaufray, J. -Y. +4 more
We present the temporal variability of the atomic and molecular hydrogen density derived from a 3D General Circulation Model describing the martian atmosphere from the surface to the exobase. A kinetic exospheric model is used to compute the hydrogen density above the exobase. We use these models to study the diurnal and seasonal variations of the…