The Pace of Fluvial Meanders on Mars and Implications for the Western Delta Deposits of Jezero Crater
Abstract Although there is little doubt that rivers once flowed on Mars' surface, how sustained and frequent their flows were remains enigmatic. Understanding the hydrology of early Mars, nonetheless, is a prerequisite to resolving the planet's climate history and the astrobiological poten...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wiley
2020-06-01
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| Series: | AGU Advances |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1029/2019AV000141 |
| _version_ | 1811249614457667584 |
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| author | Mathieu G. A. Lapôtre Alessandro Ielpi |
| author_facet | Mathieu G. A. Lapôtre Alessandro Ielpi |
| author_sort | Mathieu G. A. Lapôtre |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Although there is little doubt that rivers once flowed on Mars' surface, how sustained and frequent their flows were remains enigmatic. Understanding the hydrology of early Mars, nonetheless, is a prerequisite to resolving the planet's climate history and the astrobiological potential of various ancient putative ecosystems. In 2021, NASA's Perseverance rover will attempt to land near ancient fluviodeltaic deposits in Jezero crater. Deltas offer enhanced organic‐matter burial and preservation on Earth but translating this notion to early Martian environments remains speculative in the absence of information on flow intermittency and sedimentation rates. Here we develop a new model to infer the lateral migration rate of Martian river meanders, which, combined with orbiter‐based observations of the fluviodeltaic deposits at Jezero crater, allows us to determine a minimum timescale for the formation of its delta. We then independently constrain the total duration of delta formation, including dry spells. Our best estimates suggest that delta formation spanned ~19–37 years over a total duration of ~380,000 years, i.e., that rivers flowed for a minimum ~1 sol/15–30 Martian years and conceivably more frequently, but uncertainties on total duration are large. Despite a possibly arid climate, predicted sedimentation rates are high, suggesting a rapid burial of putative organics in distal deposits. Altogether, our results support Jezero crater's potential as a prime target to look for ancient Martian life and acquire samples to return to Earth. Any discrepancies between our predictions of the deposits' grain‐to‐bedform‐scale architecture and future rover observations will shed critical light onto Mars' early surface environments. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T15:49:41Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-706333688fb849b990f78b27de1ab9c5 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2576-604X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T15:49:41Z |
| publishDate | 2020-06-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | AGU Advances |
| spelling | doaj.art-706333688fb849b990f78b27de1ab9c52022-12-22T03:26:33ZengWileyAGU Advances2576-604X2020-06-0112n/an/a10.1029/2019AV000141The Pace of Fluvial Meanders on Mars and Implications for the Western Delta Deposits of Jezero CraterMathieu G. A. Lapôtre0Alessandro Ielpi1Department of Geological Sciences Stanford University Stanford CA USAHarquail School of Earth Sciences Laurentian University Sudbury Ontario CanadaAbstract Although there is little doubt that rivers once flowed on Mars' surface, how sustained and frequent their flows were remains enigmatic. Understanding the hydrology of early Mars, nonetheless, is a prerequisite to resolving the planet's climate history and the astrobiological potential of various ancient putative ecosystems. In 2021, NASA's Perseverance rover will attempt to land near ancient fluviodeltaic deposits in Jezero crater. Deltas offer enhanced organic‐matter burial and preservation on Earth but translating this notion to early Martian environments remains speculative in the absence of information on flow intermittency and sedimentation rates. Here we develop a new model to infer the lateral migration rate of Martian river meanders, which, combined with orbiter‐based observations of the fluviodeltaic deposits at Jezero crater, allows us to determine a minimum timescale for the formation of its delta. We then independently constrain the total duration of delta formation, including dry spells. Our best estimates suggest that delta formation spanned ~19–37 years over a total duration of ~380,000 years, i.e., that rivers flowed for a minimum ~1 sol/15–30 Martian years and conceivably more frequently, but uncertainties on total duration are large. Despite a possibly arid climate, predicted sedimentation rates are high, suggesting a rapid burial of putative organics in distal deposits. Altogether, our results support Jezero crater's potential as a prime target to look for ancient Martian life and acquire samples to return to Earth. Any discrepancies between our predictions of the deposits' grain‐to‐bedform‐scale architecture and future rover observations will shed critical light onto Mars' early surface environments.https://doi.org/10.1029/2019AV000141MarsJezeromeanderingdeltahydrologyrover |
| spellingShingle | Mathieu G. A. Lapôtre Alessandro Ielpi The Pace of Fluvial Meanders on Mars and Implications for the Western Delta Deposits of Jezero Crater AGU Advances Mars Jezero meandering delta hydrology rover |
| title | The Pace of Fluvial Meanders on Mars and Implications for the Western Delta Deposits of Jezero Crater |
| title_full | The Pace of Fluvial Meanders on Mars and Implications for the Western Delta Deposits of Jezero Crater |
| title_fullStr | The Pace of Fluvial Meanders on Mars and Implications for the Western Delta Deposits of Jezero Crater |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Pace of Fluvial Meanders on Mars and Implications for the Western Delta Deposits of Jezero Crater |
| title_short | The Pace of Fluvial Meanders on Mars and Implications for the Western Delta Deposits of Jezero Crater |
| title_sort | pace of fluvial meanders on mars and implications for the western delta deposits of jezero crater |
| topic | Mars Jezero meandering delta hydrology rover |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1029/2019AV000141 |
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