Decameter-scale Fluvial Erosion on Mars

Rebecca Williams

High-resolution images from the Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) aboard the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) spacecraft reveal variations in the preservation state of decameter and hectameter-scale drainage networks. This talk will highlight examples of martian valley networks preserved in inverted relief from a variety of geologic settings and will include illustrations from terrestrial analogs. These new observations have implications for determining the timescale of valley network formation, the nature of the fluvial environment, and the associated climatic conditions in terms of the timing of local and global climate change. Preliminary assessment of the data strongly suggests a very dynamic fluvial history of Mars, which has a limited surface expression today.

Return to PSI Seminars Page