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Paleoflood reconstruction in the Gale crater of Mars
Author(s) -
Kereszturi A.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
astronomische nachrichten
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.394
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1521-3994
pISSN - 0004-6337
DOI - 10.1002/asna.201211966
Subject(s) - mars exploration program , fluvial , geology , impact crater , ephemeral key , period (music) , sedimentary depositional environment , sediment , sediment transport , channel (broadcasting) , erosion , geomorphology , hydrology (agriculture) , astrobiology , geotechnical engineering , physics , engineering , algorithm , structural basin , computer science , acoustics , electrical engineering
Analyzing a fluvial channel and related depositional fan at its termination in the Gale crater of Mars, the eroded and the deposited volume determined tobe close to each other around 0.47 and 0.32 km 3 respectively. Using the Darcy‐Weisbach equation and a sediment transport capacity characteristic for high‐speed rivers, the duration to erode the channel and build up the sediment were found between 1.5 hours and 3.3 days. The short period might indicate that this ancient river was ephemeral and does not suggest a long duration of wetter and warmer climate, and also addresses a question regarding the general view of long‐period fluvial erosion on Mars. (© 2013 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)