1
|
Bishop JL, Yeşilbaş M, Hinman NW, Burton ZFM, Englert PAJ, Toner JD, McEwen AS, Gulick VC, Gibson EK, Koeberl C. Martian subsurface cryosalt expansion and collapse as trigger for landslides. Sci Adv 2021; 7:eabe4459. [PMID: 33536216 PMCID: PMC7857681 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abe4459] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2020] [Accepted: 12/15/2020] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
On Mars, seasonal martian flow features known as recurring slope lineae (RSL) are prevalent on sun-facing slopes and are associated with salts. On Earth, subsurface interactions of gypsum with chlorides and oxychlorine salts wreak havoc: instigating sinkholes, cave collapse, debris flows, and upheave. Here, we illustrate (i) the disruptive potential of sulfate-chloride reactions in laboratory soil crust experiments, (ii) the formation of thin films of mixed ice-liquid water "slush" at -40° to -20°C on salty Mars analog grains, (iii) how mixtures of sulfates and chlorine salts affect their solubilities in low-temperature environments, and (iv) how these salt brines could be contributing to RSL formation on Mars. Our results demonstrate that interactions of sulfates and chlorine salts in fine-grained soils on Mars could absorb water, expand, deliquesce, cause subsidence, form crusts, disrupt surfaces, and ultimately produce landslides after dust loading on these unstable surfaces.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- J L Bishop
- Carl Sagan Center, SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA.
- Space Science and Astrobiology, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - M Yeşilbaş
- Carl Sagan Center, SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
- Department of Chemistry, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - N W Hinman
- Department of Geosciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT 59812, USA
| | - Z F M Burton
- Department of Geological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - P A J Englert
- Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA
| | - J D Toner
- Department of Earth & Space Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - A S McEwen
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
| | - V C Gulick
- Carl Sagan Center, SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
- Space Science and Astrobiology, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - E K Gibson
- Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science, NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX 77058, USA
| | - C Koeberl
- Department of Lithospheric Research, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Boynton WV, Taylor GJ, Evans LG, Reedy RC, Starr R, Janes DM, Kerry KE, Drake DM, Kim KJ, Williams RMS, Crombie MK, Dohm JM, Baker V, Metzger AE, Karunatillake S, Keller JM, Newsom HE, Arnold JR, Brückner J, Englert PAJ, Gasnault O, Sprague AL, Mitrofanov I, Squyres SW, Trombka JI, d'Uston L, Wänke H, Hamara DK. Concentration of H, Si, Cl, K, Fe, and Th in the low- and mid-latitude regions of Mars. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2007. [DOI: 10.1029/2007je002887] [Citation(s) in RCA: 234] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
|
3
|
Boynton WV, Feldman WC, Squyres SW, Prettyman TH, Bruckner J, Evans LG, Reedy RC, Starr R, Arnold JR, Drake DM, Englert PAJ, Metzger AE, Mitrofanov I, Trombka JI, D'Uston C, Wanke H, Gasnault O, Hamara DK, Janes DM, Marcialis RL, Maurice S, Mikheeva I, Taylor GJ, Tokar R, Shinohara C. Distribution of hydrogen in the near surface of Mars: evidence for subsurface ice deposits. Science 2002; 297:81-5. [PMID: 12040090 DOI: 10.1126/science.1073722] [Citation(s) in RCA: 753] [Impact Index Per Article: 34.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Using the Gamma-Ray Spectrometer on the Mars Odyssey, we have identified two regions near the poles that are enriched in hydrogen. The data indicate the presence of a subsurface layer enriched in hydrogen overlain by a hydrogen-poor layer. The thickness of the upper layer decreases with decreasing distance to the pole, ranging from a column density of about 150 grams per square centimeter at -42 degrees latitude to about 40 grams per square centimeter at -77 degrees. The hydrogen-rich regions correlate with regions of predicted ice stability. We suggest that the host of the hydrogen in the subsurface layer is ice, which constitutes 35 +/- 15% of the layer by weight.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- W V Boynton
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
4
|
Boynton WV, Trombka JI, Feldman WC, Arnold JR, Englert PAJ, Metzger AE, Reedy RC, Squyres SW, Wänke H, Bailey SH, Brückner J, Callas JL, Drake DM, Duke P, Evans LG, Haines EL, McCloskey FC, Mills H, Shinohara C, Starr R. Science applications of the Mars Observer gamma ray spectrometer. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1992. [DOI: 10.1029/92je00538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
|