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Europa: Tidal heating of upwelling thermal plumes and the origin of lenticulae and chaos melting
Author(s) -
Sotin Christophe,
Head James W.,
Tobie Gabriel
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/2001gl013844
Subject(s) - diapir , tidal heating , upwelling , geology , convection , thermal , geophysics , viscosity , mechanics , oceanography , meteorology , thermodynamics , geomorphology , physics , dissipation , structural basin
Tidal heating models are linked to thermal convection models for ice having strongly temperature dependent viscosity. In the range of ice viscosity inferred from laboratory experiments, tidal forces will heat up rising diapirs on Europa. Partial melt produced in the rising diapirs is predicted to create disruption of near‐surface materials and formation of lenticulae and chaos, even if the average ice layer thickness overlying an ocean is larger than 20 km.