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More about the moment of inertia of Mars
Author(s) -
Kaula William M.,
Sleep Norman H.,
Phillips Roger J.
Publication year - 1989
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/gl016i011p01333
Subject(s) - tharsis , mars exploration program , planet , moment of inertia , terrestrial planet , geology , geophysics , gravitational field , hydrostatic equilibrium , tectonics , martian , geodesy , astrobiology , physics , astrophysics , astronomy , seismology , classical mechanics
The maximum allowable mean moment‐of‐inertia I of Mars is 0.3650 · MR² because the rate‐of‐adjustment of the rotation axis is much faster than the rate‐of‐generation of density heterogeneities, as with any planet. But Mars differs from the other terrestrial planets in that its gravity field is rougher, in the sense of stress‐difference implication, and its global tectonics is dominated by one feature, centered on the Tharsis Plateau. Plausible tectonic models of Mars require generation and support that are almost axially symmetric about Tharsis. Hence, unlike other terrestrial planets, Mars likely has two non‐hydrostatic components of moments‐of‐inertia that are nearly equal, and the most probable value of I/MR² is slightly less than 0.3650.