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MARSIS subsurface radar investigations of the South Polar reentrant Chasma Australe

Publication ,  Journal Article
Farrell, WM; Clifford, SM; Milkovich, SM; Plaut, JJ; Leuschen, CJ; Picardi, G; Gurnett, DA; Watters, TR; Safaeinili, A; Ivanov, AB; Stofan, ER ...
Published in: Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets
April 20, 2008

The Mars Express/Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionospheric Sounding (MARSIS) has conducted the first-ever subsurface probing of the south polar layered deposits (SPLD) revealing internal structure that is rich in detail. We report on subsurface features detected from a set of orbits that passed over the largest of the south polar reentrants, Chasma Australe, at the edge of the SPLD. We present selected MARSIS overflights to both document the unique observations and gain insight into the possible origin of this feature. We conclude that MARSIS observations clearly reveal new evidence of subsurface structure, such as (1) internal bands, (2) the continuation of the Prometheus basin floor beneath the SPLD to form a prominent basal interface, and (3) the presence of a possible ice-rich layer on the Prometheus basin floor extending to 500-m depth. There is no obvious indication of a present-day aquifer at the head of the chasma and identification of features associated with a past aquifer and water flow is ambiguous. While MARSIS observations may not uniquely solve the chasma origin debate, they do reveal the subsurface region beneath this very interesting feature for the first time. Copyright 2008 by the American Geophysical Union.

Duke Scholars

Published In

Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets

DOI

ISSN

0148-0227

Publication Date

April 20, 2008

Volume

113

Issue

4

Related Subject Headings

  • Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences
 

Citation

APA
Chicago
ICMJE
MLA
NLM
Farrell, W. M., Clifford, S. M., Milkovich, S. M., Plaut, J. J., Leuschen, C. J., Picardi, G., … Espley, J. R. (2008). MARSIS subsurface radar investigations of the South Polar reentrant Chasma Australe. Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, 113(4). https://doi.org/10.1029/2007JE002974
Farrell, W. M., S. M. Clifford, S. M. Milkovich, J. J. Plaut, C. J. Leuschen, G. Picardi, D. A. Gurnett, et al. “MARSIS subsurface radar investigations of the South Polar reentrant Chasma Australe.” Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets 113, no. 4 (April 20, 2008). https://doi.org/10.1029/2007JE002974.
Farrell WM, Clifford SM, Milkovich SM, Plaut JJ, Leuschen CJ, Picardi G, et al. MARSIS subsurface radar investigations of the South Polar reentrant Chasma Australe. Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets. 2008 Apr 20;113(4).
Farrell, W. M., et al. “MARSIS subsurface radar investigations of the South Polar reentrant Chasma Australe.” Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, vol. 113, no. 4, Apr. 2008. Scopus, doi:10.1029/2007JE002974.
Farrell WM, Clifford SM, Milkovich SM, Plaut JJ, Leuschen CJ, Picardi G, Gurnett DA, Watters TR, Safaeinili A, Ivanov AB, Phillips RJ, Stofan ER, Heggy E, Cummer SA, Espley JR. MARSIS subsurface radar investigations of the South Polar reentrant Chasma Australe. Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets. 2008 Apr 20;113(4).

Published In

Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets

DOI

ISSN

0148-0227

Publication Date

April 20, 2008

Volume

113

Issue

4

Related Subject Headings

  • Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences