Cold-Climate Landforms on Mars

• Main Author: Gasselt, Stephan van
• Other Authors: n, Gerhard Neukum, Ralf Jaumann, Margot Böse, Christoph Heubeck, Claudio Rosenberg
• Format: Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: 2007
• Subjects: Mars; Remote Sensing; Cold-Climate Landforms; Periglacial; Permafrost; ddc:550; Ice; permafrost
• Online Access: https://refubium.fu-berlin.de/handle/fub188/1773; https://doi.org/10.17169/refubium-5975; https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:188-fudissthesis000000003198-7

Title, Preface i Abstract v Kurzfassung vii Contents ix List of Figures xii List of Tables xvi 1. Introduction 1 I Background Theory on Terrestrial and Martian Permafrost and Periglacial Environments 5 2. Definitions and Background of Periglacial and Permafrost Environments 7 2.1 Terrestrial and Periglacial Environments 7 2.2 Martian Permafrost and Ground Ice 16 2.3 Selection of Landforms 20 3. Landforms Indicative of Creep and Ice 21 3.1 Terrestrial Rock Glaciers 21 3.2 Martian Landforms related to the Creep of Ice and Debris 33 4. Thermal Contraction Polygons and Formation of Polygonal Fracture Patterns 61 4.1 Terrestrial Polygons and Landforms 61 4.2 Martian Polygonal Patterns Indicative of Thermal Contraction Processes 68 5. Pingo Landforms and Frost Mounds 75 5.1 Terrestrial Landforms 75 5.2 Martian Candidate Landforms 80 II Methods and Approaches in Data Analysis 85 6. Instrument Data and Data Processing 87 6.1 General Overview 87 6.2 Data Processing Packages and Tailored Software 88 6.3 Data Processing and Data Usage 90 7. Data Analysis and Methods for Data Interpretation 101 7.1 Selection and Fusion of Data 101 7.2 Geomorphologic and Geologic Mapping 102 7.3 Geomorphometric Methods 103 7.4 Chronostratigraphic Methods 104 III Investigations of Key Areas 107 8. Seasonal Variations of Polygonal Thermal Contraction Crack Patterns in a South Polar Trough, Mars 109 9. Cold-Climate Modification of Martian Landscapes: A Case Study of a Spatulate Debris Landform in the Hellas Montes Region, Mars 131 10. Current State and Disintegration of Rock-Glacier Landforms in Tempe Terra, Mars 155 11. Lineated Valley Fill at the Martian Dichotomy Boundary: Nature and Degradation 171 12. Geomorphic Evidence for Former Lobate Debris Aprons at Low Latitudes on Mars: Indicators of the Martian Paleoclimate 183 13. Deposition and Degradation of a Volatile-Rich Layer in Utopia Planitia, and Implications for Climate History on Mars 197 14. Summary of Results 213 Bibliography 217 Abbreviations, Symbols, Units, Index 255 ...