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Reconstructing river flows remotely on Earth, Titan, and Mars. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2206837120. [PMID: 37428909 PMCID: PMC10629578 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2206837120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2022] [Accepted: 06/05/2023] [Indexed: 07/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Alluvial rivers are conveyor belts of fluid and sediment that provide a record of upstream climate and erosion on Earth, Titan, and Mars. However, many of Earth's rivers remain unsurveyed, Titan's rivers are not well resolved by current spacecraft data, and Mars' rivers are no longer active, hindering reconstructions of planetary surface conditions. To overcome these problems, we use dimensionless hydraulic geometry relations-scaling laws that relate river channel dimensions to flow and sediment transport rates-to calculate in-channel conditions using only remote sensing measurements of channel width and slope. On Earth, this offers a way to predict flow and sediment flux in rivers that lack field measurements and shows that the distinct dynamics of bedload-dominated, suspended load-dominated, and bedrock rivers give rise to distinct channel characteristics. On Mars, this approach not only predicts grain sizes at Gale Crater and Jezero Crater that overlap with those measured by the Curiosity and Perseverance rovers, it enables reconstructions of past flow conditions that are consistent with proposed long-lived hydrologic activity at both craters. On Titan, our predicted sediment fluxes to the coast of Ontario Lacus could build the lake's river delta in as little as ~1,000 y, and our scaling relationships suggest that Titan's rivers may be wider, slope more gently, and transport sediment at lower flows than rivers on Earth or Mars. Our approach provides a template for predicting channel properties remotely for alluvial rivers across Earth, along with interpreting spacecraft observations of rivers on Titan and Mars.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samuel P. D. Birch
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA02139
| | - Gary Parker
- Department of Geology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL61820
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL61820
| | - Paul Corlies
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA02139
| | - Jason M. Soderblom
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA02139
| | - Julia W. Miller
- Department of Earth, Planetary, and Space Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, CA90095
| | - Rose V. Palermo
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology-Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute Joint Program in Oceanography/Applied Ocean Science and Engineering, Cambridge and Woods Hole, MA02139
| | - Juan M. Lora
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Yale University, New Haven, CT06520
| | - Andrew D. Ashton
- Department of Geology and Geophysics, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA02543
| | | | - J. Taylor Perron
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA02139
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2
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Abstract
Data analysis methods have scarcely kept pace with the rapid increase in Earth observations, spurring the development of novel algorithms, storage methods, and computational techniques. For scientists interested in Mars, the problem is always the same: there is simultaneously never enough of the right data and an overwhelming amount of data in total. Finding sufficient data needles in a haystack to test a hypothesis requires hours of manual data screening, and more needles and hay are added constantly. To date, the vast majority of Martian research has been focused on either one-off local/regional studies or on hugely time-consuming manual global studies. Machine learning in its numerous forms can be helpful for future such work. Machine learning has the potential to help map and classify a large variety of both features and properties on the surface of Mars and to aid in the planning and execution of future missions. Here, we outline the current extent of machine learning as applied to Mars, summarize why machine learning should be an important tool for planetary geomorphology in particular, and suggest numerous research avenues and funding priorities for future efforts. We conclude that: (1) moving toward methods that require less human input (i.e., self- or semi-supervised) is an important paradigm shift for Martian applications, (2) new robust methods using generative adversarial networks to generate synthetic high-resolution digital terrain models represent an exciting new avenue for Martian geomorphologists, (3) more effort and money must be directed toward developing standardized datasets and benchmark tests, and (4) the community needs a large-scale, generalized, and programmatically accessible geographic information system (GIS).
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3
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Changing spatial distribution of water flow charts major change in Mars's greenhouse effect. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eabo5894. [PMID: 35613275 PMCID: PMC9132440 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abo5894] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2022] [Accepted: 03/31/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Early Mars had rivers, but the cause of Mars's wet-to-dry transition remains unknown. Past climate on Mars can be probed using the spatial distribution of climate-sensitive landforms. We analyzed global databases of water-worked landforms and identified changes in the spatial distribution of rivers over time. These changes are simply explained by comparison to a simplified meltwater model driven by an ensemble of global climate model simulations, as the result of ≳10 K global cooling, from global average surface temperature [Formula: see text] ≥ 268 K to [Formula: see text] ~ 258 K, due to a weaker greenhouse effect. In other words, river-forming climates on early Mars were warm and wet first, and cold and wet later. Unexpectedly, analysis of the greenhouse effect within our ensemble of global climate model simulations suggests that this shift was primarily driven by waning non-CO2 radiative forcing, and not changes in CO2 radiative forcing.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Michael A. Mischna
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - Bowen Fan
- University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Alexander M. Morgan
- Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20002, USA
- Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
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Fluvial Depositional Systems of the African Humid Period: An Analog for an Early, Wet Mars in the Eastern Sahara. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH. PLANETS 2022; 127:e2021JE007087. [PMID: 35860764 PMCID: PMC9285406 DOI: 10.1029/2021je007087] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2021] [Revised: 04/20/2022] [Accepted: 04/27/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
A widely hypothesized but complex transition from widespread fluvial activity to predominantly aeolian processes is inferred on Mars based on remote sensing data observations of ancient landforms. However, the lack of analysis of in situ martian fluvial deposits hinders our understanding of the flow regime nature and sustainability of the martian fluvial activity and the hunt for ancient life. Studying analogs from arid zones on Earth is fundamental to quantitatively understanding geomorphic processes and climate drivers that might have dominated during early Mars. Here we investigate the formation and preservation of fluvial depositional systems in the eastern Sahara, where the largest arid region on Earth hosts important repositories of past climatic changes. The fluvial systems are composed of well-preserved single-thread sinuous to branching ridges and fan-shaped deposits interpreted as deltas. The systems' configuration and sedimentary content suggest that ephemeral rivers carved these landforms by sequential intermittent episodes of erosion and deposition active for 10-100s years over ∼10,000 years during the late Quaternary. Subsequently, these landforms were sculpted by a marginal role of rainfall and aeolian processes with minimum erosion rates of 1.1 ± 0.2 mm/yr, supplying ∼96 ± 24 × 1010 m3 of disaggregated sediment to adjacent aeolian dunes. Our results imply that similar martian fluvial systems preserving single-thread, short distance source-to-sink courses may have formed due to transient drainage networks active over short durations. Altogether, this study adds to the growing recognition of the complexity of interpreting climate history from orbital images of landforms.
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Affiliation(s)
- A. S. Zaki
- Department of Earth SciencesUniversity of GenevaGenevaSwitzerland
| | - J. M. Davis
- Department of Earth SciencesNatural History MuseumLondonUK
| | | | - R. Giegengack
- Department of Earth & Environmental ScienceUniversity of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiaPAUSA
| | - M. Roige
- Department de GeologiaUniversitat Autònoma de BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
| | - S. Conway
- CNRS UMR 6112 Laboratoire de Planétologie et Géodynamique, Université de NantesNantesFrance
| | - M. Schuster
- Université de StrasbourgCNRSInstitut Terre et Environnement de StrasbourgStrasbourgFrance
| | - S. Gupta
- Department of Earth Sciences and EngineeringImperial College LondonLondonUK
| | - F. Salese
- Centro de Astrobiología (CSIC‐INTA), Torrejón de ArdozMadridSpain
- International Research School of Planetary Sciences (IRSPS)Università d’AnnunzioPescaraItaly
| | - K. S. Sangwan
- Department of Earth Sciences and EngineeringImperial College LondonLondonUK
| | - A. G. Fairén
- Centro de Astrobiología (CSIC‐INTA), Torrejón de ArdozMadridSpain
- Department of AstronomyCornell UniversityIthacaNYUSA
| | - C. M. Hughes
- Department of GeosciencesUniversity of ArkansasFayettevilleARUSA
| | - C. F. Pain
- MED_Soil, Departamento de Cristlografía, Mineralogía y Quimica AgrícolaUniversidad de SevillaSevillaSpain
| | - S. Castelltort
- Department of Earth SciencesUniversity of GenevaGenevaSwitzerland
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Fluvial Regimes, Morphometry, and Age of Jezero Crater Paleolake Inlet Valleys and Their Exobiological Significance for the 2020 Rover Mission Landing Site. ASTROBIOLOGY 2020; 20:994-1013. [PMID: 32466668 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2019.2132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
Jezero crater has been selected as the landing site for the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover, because it contains a paleolake with two fan-deltas, inlet and outlet valleys. Using the data from the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) and the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE), we conducted a quantitative geomorphological study of the inlet valleys of the Jezero paleolake. Results show that the strongest erosion is related to a network of deep valleys that cut into the highland bedrock well upstream of the Jezero crater and likely formed before the formation of the regional olivine-rich unit. In contrast, the lower sections of valleys display poor bedrock erosion and a lack of tributaries but are characterized by the presence of pristine landforms interpreted as fluvial bars from preserved channels, the discharge rates of which have been estimated at 103-104 m3s-1. The valleys' lower sections postdate the olivine-rich unit, are linked directly to the fan-deltas, and are thus formed in an energetic, late stage of activity. Although a Late Noachian age for the fan-deltas' formation is not excluded based on crosscutting relationships and crater counts, this indicates evidence of a Hesperian age with significant implications for exobiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolas Mangold
- Laboratoire Planétologie et Géodynamique, UMR6112 CNRS, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Nantes, Nantes, France
| | - Gilles Dromart
- Univ Lyon, ENSL, Univ Lyon 1, CNRS, LGL-TPE, Lyon, France
| | - Veronique Ansan
- Laboratoire Planétologie et Géodynamique, UMR6112 CNRS, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Nantes, Nantes, France
| | - Francesco Salese
- Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
- International Research School of Planetary Sciences, Università Gabriele D'Annunzio, Pescara, Italy
| | | | - Marion Massé
- Laboratoire Planétologie et Géodynamique, UMR6112 CNRS, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Nantes, Nantes, France
| | | | - Kathryn M Stack
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, USA
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Sustained fluvial deposition recorded in Mars' Noachian stratigraphic record. Nat Commun 2020; 11:2067. [PMID: 32372029 PMCID: PMC7200759 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-15622-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2020] [Accepted: 03/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Orbital observation has revealed a rich record of fluvial landforms on Mars, with much of this record dating 3.6–3.0 Ga. Despite widespread geomorphic evidence, few analyses of Mars’ alluvial sedimentary-stratigraphic record exist, with detailed studies of alluvium largely limited to smaller sand-bodies amenable to study in-situ by rovers. These typically metre-scale outcrop dimensions have prevented interpretation of larger scale channel-morphology and long-term basin evolution, vital for understanding the past Martian climate. Here we give an interpretation of a large sedimentary succession at Izola mensa within the NW Hellas Basin rim. The succession comprises channel and barform packages which together demonstrate that river deposition was already well established >3.7 Ga. The deposits mirror terrestrial analogues subject to low-peak discharge variation, implying that river deposition at Izola was subject to sustained, potentially perennial, fluvial flow. Such conditions would require an environment capable of maintaining large volumes of water for extensive time-periods, necessitating a precipitation-driven hydrological cycle. Using high-resolution orbital imagery of the Martian surface, the authors Salese et al. here describe the first discovered stratigraphic product of multiple extensive fluvial-channel belts in an exposed vertical section at Izola Mensa in the northwestern rim of the Hellas Basin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesco Salese
- Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, Princetonlaan 8a, Utrecht, 3584 CB, The Netherlands. .,International Research School of Planetary Sciences, Università Gabriele D'Annunzio, Viale Pindaro 42, Pescara, 65127, Italy.
| | - William J McMahon
- Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, Princetonlaan 8a, Utrecht, 3584 CB, The Netherlands
| | - Matthew R Balme
- Planetary Environments Group, Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes, UK
| | - Veronique Ansan
- LPG Nantes, UMR6112, CNRS-Université de Nantes, 2 rue de la Houssinère, BP 92208, 44322, Nantes Cedex 3, France
| | - Joel M Davis
- Department of Earth Sciences, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, Kensington, London, SW7 5BD, UK
| | - Maarten G Kleinhans
- Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, Princetonlaan 8a, Utrecht, 3584 CB, The Netherlands
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A Diverse Array of Fluvial Depositional Systems in Arabia Terra: Evidence for mid-Noachian to Early Hesperian Rivers on Mars. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH. PLANETS 2019; 124:1913-1934. [PMID: 31598451 PMCID: PMC6774298 DOI: 10.1029/2019je005976] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2019] [Revised: 05/24/2019] [Accepted: 06/24/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Branching to sinuous ridges systems, hundreds of kilometers in length and comprising layered strata, are present across much of Arabia Terra, Mars. These ridges are interpreted as depositional fluvial channels, now preserved as inverted topography. Here we use high-resolution image and topographic data sets to investigate the morphology of these depositional systems and show key examples of their relationships to associated fluvial landforms. The inverted channel systems likely comprise indurated conglomerate, sandstone, and mudstone bodies, which form a multistory channel stratigraphy. The channel systems intersect local basins and indurated sedimentary mounds, which we interpret as paleolake deposits. Some inverted channels are located within erosional valley networks, which have regional and local catchments. Inverted channels are typically found in downslope sections of valley networks, sometimes at the margins of basins, and numerous different transition morphologies are observed. These relationships indicate a complex history of erosion and deposition, possibly controlled by changes in water or sediment flux, or base-level variation. Other inverted channel systems have no clear preserved catchment, likely lost due to regional resurfacing of upland areas. Sediment may have been transported through Arabia Terra toward the dichotomy and stored in local and regional-scale basins. Regional stratigraphic relations suggest these systems were active between the mid-Noachian and early Hesperian. The morphology of these systems is supportive of an early Mars climate, which was characterized by prolonged precipitation and runoff.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joel M. Davis
- Department of Earth SciencesNatural History MuseumLondonUK
| | - Sanjeev Gupta
- Department of Earth Science and EngineeringImperial College LondonLondonUK
| | - Matthew Balme
- School of Physical SciencesThe Open UniversityBuckinghamshireUK
| | | | - Peter Fawdon
- School of Physical SciencesThe Open UniversityBuckinghamshireUK
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