Shallow Reservoirs May Supply Mars Explorers
(From the November/December 2001 issue of StarDate magazine)
Future Mars explorers may find an accessible water supply near the planet’s equator, says an astronomer who studies Martian craters. Frozen and liquid water may fill a reservoir as little as 360 feet (110 meters) below the surface of Solis Planum, a volcanic region near the planet’s largest canyon.
Nadine Barlow, director of Robinson Observatory at the University of Central Florida, and her collaborators reported the finding in the August 15 issue of Geophysical Research Letters. Barlow, who has compiled a database of more than 42,000 Martian craters at least five kilometers (3.1 miles) in diameter, based her conclusions on the contours of impact craters and surrounding debris in Solis Planum.
When an asteroid slams into the Martian surface it gouges a circular crater. It also blasts material high into the atmosphere, which settles back to the surface. The debris pattern surrounding a crater, combined with the contours of the crater itself, can reveal whether ice or water were mixed with the rock at the impact point.
Barlow’s interpretation of the craters in Solis Planum indicates that large amounts of water were present when the craters formed. Since the craters are fairly young, that means a good deal of water could still exist not far below the surface. Volcanic activity in the region has tilted rock beds, Barlow reports, pushing the water table higher. Volcanic activity also could melt ice below the surface, keeping the water in liquid form.
The Florida astronomers will sift through images from Mars Global Surveyor for more information on the possible reservoir. The 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft, which was scheduled to enter orbit around Mars in late October, also may provide additional details. — Damond Benningfield
|
  |
Contact StarDate | About StarDate | Friends of McDonald | Sign up for Sky Tips
