Search Publications
Sedimentological evidence for a deltaic origin of the western fan deposit in Jezero crater, Mars and implications for future exploration
Mustard, John F.; Goudge, Timothy A.; Head, James W. +2 more
We examine the stratigraphic architecture and mineralogy of the western fan deposit in the Jezero crater paleolake on Mars to reassess whether this fan formed as a delta in a standing body of water, as opposed to by alluvial or debris flow processes. Analysis of topography and images reveals that the stratigraphically lowest layers within the fan …
Selection of the InSight Landing Site
Golombek, M.; Charalambous, C.; Piqueux, S. +32 more
The selection of the Discovery Program InSight landing site took over four years from initial identification of possible areas that met engineering constraints, to downselection via targeted data from orbiters (especially Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) Context Camera (CTX) and High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) images), to sele…
Winds measured by the Rover Environmental Monitoring Station (REMS) during the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover's Bagnold Dunes Campaign and comparison with numerical modeling using MarsWRF
Bridges, Nathan T.; Sullivan, Robert; Newman, Claire E. +9 more
A high density of REMS wind measurements were collected in three science investigations during MSL's Bagnold Dunes Campaign, which took place over ∼80 sols around southern winter solstice (Ls∼90°) and constituted the first in situ analysis of the environmental conditions, morphology, structure, and composition of an active dune field on Mars. The …
The structure and variability of Mars dayside thermosphere from MAVEN NGIMS and IUVS measurements: Seasonal and solar activity trends in scale heights and temperatures
Stiepen, Arnaud; Schneider, Nicholas M.; Bougher, Stephen W. +10 more
Mars dayside thermospheric temperature and scale height trends were examined using measurements from the Neutral Gas Ion Mass Spectrometer (NGIMS) and the Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph (IUVS) on the Mars Atmosphere Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft. Average scale heights (over 150-180 km for solar zenith angles ≤75°) from several different …
Seasonal variability of the hydrogen exosphere of Mars
Halekas, J. S.
The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission measures both the upstream solar wind and collisional products from energetic neutral hydrogen atoms that precipitate into the upper atmosphere after their initial formation by charge exchange with exospheric hydrogen. By computing the ratio between the densities of these populations, we d…
Interplanetary coronal mass ejection observed at STEREO-A, Mars, comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, Saturn, and New Horizons en route to Pluto: Comparison of its Forbush decreases at 1.4, 3.1, and 9.9 AU
Barabash, S.; Krupp, N.; Roussos, E. +48 more
We discuss observations of the journey throughout the Solar System of a large interplanetary coronal mass ejection (ICME) that was ejected at the Sun on 14 October 2014. The ICME hit Mars on 17 October, as observed by the Mars Express, Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN Mission (MAVEN), Mars Odyssey, and Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) missions,…
SPICAM on Mars Express: A 10 year in-depth survey of the Martian atmosphere
Gondet, B.; Vandaele, A. C.; Reberac, A. +24 more
The SPICAM experiment onboard Mars Express has accumulated during the last decade a wealth of observations that has permitted a detailed characterization of the atmospheric composition and activity from the near-surface up to above the exosphere. The SPICAM climatology is one of the longest assembled to date by an instrument in orbit around Mars, …
Martian cratering 11. Utilizing decameter scale crater populations to study Martian history
Daubar, I. J.; Hartmann, W. K.
New information has been obtained in recent years regarding formation rates and the production size-frequency distribution (PSFD) of decameter-scale primary Martian craters formed during recent orbiter missions. Here we compare the PSFD of the currently forming small primaries (P) with new data on the PSFD of the total small crater population that…
The geological history of Northeast Syrtis Major, Mars
Mustard, John F.; Bramble, Michael S.; Salvatore, Mark R.
As inferred from orbital spectroscopic data, Northeast Syrtis Major bears considerable mineral diversity that spans the Noachian-Hesperian boundary despite its small geographic area. In this study we use observations from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment, supplemented with Context Camera imagery, to characterize and map the lateral e…
New Martian valley network volume estimate consistent with ancient ocean and warm and wet climate
Howard, Alan D.; Luo, Wei; Cang, Xuezhi
The volume of Martian valley network (VN) cavity and the amount of water needed to create the cavity by erosion are of significant importance for understanding the early Martian climate, the style and rate of hydrologic cycling, and the possibility of an ancient ocean. However, previous attempts at estimating these two quantities were based on sel…