Noachis Quadrangle

The Noachis quadrangle is one of a series of 30 quadrangle maps of Mars used by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Astrogeology Research Program. The Noachis quadrangle is also referred to as MC-27 (Mars Chart-27).

The Noachis quadrangle covers the area from 300° to 360° west longitude and 30° to 65° south latitude on Mars. It lies between the two giant impact basins on Mars: Argyre and Hellas. The Noachis quadrangle includes Noachis Terra and the western part of Hellas Planitia.

Noachis is so densely covered with impact craters that it is considered among the oldest landforms on Mars—hence the term "Noachian" for one of the earliest time periods in martian history.
In addition, many previously buried craters are now coming to the surface, where Noachis' extreme age has allowed ancient craters to be filled, and once again newly exposed.

Much of the surface in Noachis quadrangle shows a scalloped topography where the disappearance of ground ice has left depressions.

The first piece of human technology to land on Mars landed (crashed) in the Noachis quadrangle. The Soviet's Mars 2 crashed at . It weighed about one ton. The automated craft attempted to land in a giant dust storm. To make conditions even worse, this area also has many dust devils.

Scalloped topography

Certain regions of Mars display scalloped-shaped depressions. The depressions are believed to be the remains of an ice-rich mantle deposit. Scallops are created when ice sublimates from frozen soil. This mantle material probably fell from the air as ice formed on dust when the climate was different due to changes in the tilt of the Mars pole. The scallops are typically tens of meters deep and from a few hundred to a few thousand meters across. They can be almost circular or elongated. Some appear to have coalesced, thereby causing a large heavily pitted terrain to form. A study published in Icarus, found that the landforms of scalloped topography can be made by the subsurface loss of water ice by sublimation under current Martian climate conditions. Their model predicts similar shapes when the ground has large amounts of pure ice, up to many tens of meters in depth.
The process of producing the terrain may begin with sublimation from a crack because there are often polygon cracks where scallops form.

PSP 004340 1235scalloped.jpg, Scalloped topography, as seen by HiRISE
4340 1235scalloped.jpg, Close view of scalloped topography, as seen by HiRISE

ESP 050715 1225devilsscallops.jpg, Scalloped topography, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program Dust devil tracks are also visible.

ESP 050728 1210scalloped.jpg, Scalloped topography, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

Dust Devil Tracks

Many areas on Mars experience the passage of giant dust devils. A thin coating of fine bright dust covers most of the Martian surface. When a dust devil goes by it blows away the coating and exposes the underlying dark surface creating tracks. Dust devils have been seen from the ground and from orbit. They have even blown the dust off of the solar panels of the two Rovers on Mars, thereby greatly extending their lives. The twin Rovers were designed to last for 3 months, instead they have lasted more than six years and are still going after over 8 years. The pattern of the tracks have been shown to change every few months. TA study that combined data from the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) and the Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) found that some large dust devils on Mars have a diameter of 700 meters and last at least 26 minutes. The image below of Russel Crater shows changes in dust devil tracks over a period of only three months, as documented by HiRISE. Other Dust Devil Tracks are visible in the picture of Frento Vallis.

Image:Russel Crater Dust Devil Changes.JPG, Russell Crater Dust Devil Changes, as seen by HiRISE. Click on image to see changes in dust devil tracks in just 3 months.
Image:Frento Vallis.JPG, Frento Vallis, as seen by HiRISE. Click on image to see better view of Dust Devil Tracks.

Craters

Impact craters generally have a rim with ejecta around them, in contrast volcanic craters usually do not have a rim or ejecta deposits. As craters get larger (greater than 10 km in diameter) they usually have a central peak. The peak is caused by a rebound of the crater floor following the impact. Sometimes craters will display layers. Craters can show us what lies deep under the surface.

Image:Maunder Crater.JPG, Maunder Crater, as seen by HiRISE. The overhang is part of the degraded south (toward bottom) wall of crater. The scale bar is 500 meters long.
Image:Asimov Crater.jpg, Asimov Crater, as seen by HiRISE. Bottom of picture shows southeastern wall of crater. Top of picture is edge of mound that fills most of the crater.
Image:Asimov Crater Layers.jpg, Layers in west slope of Asimov Crater, as seen by HiRISE.
Image:Asimov Layers Close-up.JPG, Close-up of layers in west slope of Asimov Crater. Shadows show the overhang. Some of the layers are much more resistant to erosion, so they stick out. Image from HiRISE.
Image:Asimov Crater Central Pit.jpg, East Slope of Central Pit in Asimov Crater, as seen by HiRISE. Click on image to see more details of the many gullies.
Image:Kaiser crater THEMIS footprint.jpg, Kaiser Crater (large crater in upper part of image)context for THEMIS image.
Image:Kaiser Crater.jpg, Detail of south wall of Kaiser Crater, as seen by THEMIS. Top of image shows part of a dune field.
Image:Rabe Crater Floor.JPG, Rabe Crater Floor, as seen by HiRISE. Click on image to see layers. Dark sand that made the dunes was probably blown in from elsewhere.
Image:Exhumed crater in Noachis.JPG, Crater that was buried in another age and is now being exposed by erosion, as seen by the Mars Global Surveyor, under the MOC Public Targeting Program.
Image:24396floor.jpg, Floor of crater in Noachis quadrangle, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program.
ESP 035632 1490noachiscraterfloor.jpg, Erosion forms on floor of crater, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program
Wikileverrier.jpg, Le Verrier (Martian Crater), as seen by CTX camera (on Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter)

Sand Dunes

When there are perfect conditions for producing sand dunes, steady wind in one direction and just enough sand, a barchan sand dune forms. Barchans have a gentle slope on the wind side and a much steeper slope on the lee side where horns or a notch often forms. One picture below shows a definite barchan.

Image:Dark dunes in Noachis.JPG, Dark dunes (probably basalt), in an intracrater dune field, Noachis. Picture from Mars Global Surveyor, under the MOC Public Targeting Program.
Image:Dunes Wide View.jpg, Wide view of dunes in Noachis, as seen by HiRISE.
Image:Close-up view of Dunes.jpg, Close-up View of dunes in previous image, as seen by HiRISE. Note how sand barely covers some boulders.
Image:Barchan in Noachis.jpg, Barchan sand dunes in the Hellespontus region, as seen by HiRISE. The horns point in the downwind direction.
Image:Proctor Crater Ripples and Dunes.JPG, Proctor Crater ripples and dunes, as seen by HiRISE.
ESP 046378 1415dunes.jpg, Wide view of a field of sand dunes, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program
46378 1415dunes.jpg, Close view of sand dunes, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program A birchen dune is labeled.
46378 1415dunes2.jpg, Close view of sand dunes, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program
46378 1415dunes3.jpg, Close view of sand dunes, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program A birchen dune is labeled.
ESP 046378 1415dunescolor.jpg, Close, color view of sand dunes, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

File:55097 1455dunescolor.jpg, Close, color view of dome sand dunes, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

Gullies

Gullies on steep slopes are found in certain regions of Mars. Many ideas have been advanced to explain them. Formation by running water when the climate was different is a popular idea. Recently, because changes in gullies have been seen since HiRISE has been orbiting Mars, it is thought that they may be formed by chunks of dry ice moving down slope during spring time. Gullies are one of the most interesting discoveries made by orbiting space craft.

ESP 037793 1445noachisgullies.jpg, Gullies on the wall of a crater, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program
Image:Close-up of Asimov Crater.JPG, Gullies on mound in Asimov Crater, as seen by HiRISE

ESP 048159 1310gullies.jpg, Wide view of gullies and ridges in crater, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

48159 1310gullychannels.jpg, Close view of gully channels, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program Channels make some tight curves.

48159 1310gullychannelsclose.jpg, Close view of gully channels, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program Arrows point to small channel within larger channels.

File:ESP 055056 1420gulliesridges.jpg, Wide view of gullies, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program
File:55056 1420gullies.jpg, Close view of gullies, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program Channels show curves.
File:55056 1420gulliesclose.jpg, Close view of gullies, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program Polygonal shapes are visible.
File:ESP 055227 1420crater.jpg, Crater with gullies, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

File:55227 1420gullies.jpg, Close view of gullies, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

Hellas floor features

The Hellas floor contains some strange-looking features. One of these features is called "banded terrain." This terrain has also been called "taffy pull" terrain, and it lies near honeycomb terrain, another strange surface. Banded terrain is found in the north-western part of the Hellas basin. This section of the Hellas basin is the deepest. The banded-terrain deposit displays an alternation of narrow band shapes and inter-bands. The sinuous nature and relatively smooth surface texture suggesting a viscous flow origin. A study published in Planetary and Space Science found that this terrain was the youngest deposit of the interior of Hellas. They also suggest in the paper that banded terrain may have covered a larger area of the NW interior of Hellas. The bands can be classified as linear, concentric, or lobate. Bands are typically 3–15 km long, 3 km wide. Narrow inter-band depressions are 65 m wide and 10 m deep. Pictures of these features can look like abstract art.

G18 025437 1406hellasbandssuperwide.jpg, Wide view of part of the floor of the Hellas basin, as seen by CTX
G18 025437 1406hellasbandswide.jpg, Wide view of Hellas basin floor, as seen by CTX. This is a slight enlargement of the previous image. The box shows the location of the next image that was taken with HiRISE.
ESP 033995 1410bands.jpg, Close-up of banded terrain on the floor of the Hellas basin, as seen by HiRISE Other, previous photos show wide views of this region.
Image:Twisted Terrain in Hellas Planitia.jpg, Twisted Terrain in Hellas Planitia, but actually located in Noachis quadrangle. Imagine trying to walk across this. Image taken with HiRISE.

ESP 048830 1415ridges.jpg, Layered features on floor of Hellas Planitia, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program This may be an example of honeycomb terrain that is not yet completely understood.

File:ESP 055080 1425twistedbands.jpg, Twisted bands on the floor of Hellas Planitia, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program
File:ESP 055212 1420taffypull.jpg, Twisted bands on the floor of Hellas Planitia, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program These twisted bands are also called "taffy pull" terrain.

File:ESP 055146 1425ridges.jpg, Wide view of twisted bands on the floor of Hellas Planitia, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

File:55146 1425ridgesclosecolor.jpg, Close view of ridges in twisted bands, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

File:ESP 055001 1425honeycomb.jpg, Floor features in Hellas Planitia, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

File:ESP 055067 1420ridgenetwork.jpg, Floor features in Hellas Planitia, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

Gullies on Dunes

Gullies are found on some dunes. These are somewhat different from gullies in other places, like the walls of craters. Gullies on dunes seem to keep the same width for a long distance and often just end with a pit, instead of an apron. Many of these gullies are found on dunes in Russell (Martian crater).

ESP 020217 1255dunechannels.jpg, Wide view of dunes in Russell Crater, as seen by HiRISE Many narrow gullies are visible.
20217 1255dunechannelsclose.jpg, Close view of the end of gullies in Russell Crater, as seen by HiRISE Note: These type of gullies do not usually end with an apron.

20217 1255dunechannelsclosetop.jpg, Close view of the end of gullies in Russell Crater, as seen by HiRISE
ESP 020217 1255dunesclosecolor.jpg, Close, color view of the end of gullies in Russell Crater, as seen by HiRISE

Channels

File:ESP 056981 1415channels.jpg, Channels, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

File:ESP 053698 1485channel.jpg, Channel, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

Other scenes from Noachis quadrangle

Image:Noachis Map.JPG, Quadrangle map of Noachis labeled with major features.
Image:Dissected Mantle.JPG, Dissected Mantle with layers, as seen by HiRISE.
Esp 037147 1430layers.jpg, Layers in depression in crater, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program
ESP 046417 1425twistedridges.jpg, Wide view of ridges, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program
46417 1425hollows.jpg, Close view of hollows, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program Note: this is an enlargement of the previous image.
46417 1425straightridges.jpg, Ridges, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program Note: this is an enlargement of the previous image.
48159 1310highcenterpolygons.jpg, High center polygons, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program Boxes are drawn around two individual polygons.

ESP 048184 1470moundsbrains.jpg, Wide view of mounds and brain terrain, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program
48184 1470moundsbrains.jpg, Close view of mounds and brain terrain, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

ESP 049226 1480boulderslighttoned.jpg, Light-toned material, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program Light-toned material is often associated with minerals that formed in water.

49226 1480boulderslighttoned.jpg, Close view of surface, showing boulders and light-toned material, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

ESP 049674 1470flow.jpg, Flow, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

ESP 051138 1460ridges.jpg, Wide view showing flows and ridges, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program
51138 1460ridges.jpg, Close view of ridges, as seen by HiRISE under HiWish program

Other Mars Quadrangles

Interactive Mars map

See also

* Barchan
* Climate of Mars
* Geology of Mars
* Groundwater on Mars
* HiRISE
* Hydrothermal circulation
* Impact crater
* List of craters on Mars
* List of quadrangles on Mars
* Martian gullies
* MOC Public Targeting Program
* Ore genesis
* Ore resources on Mars
* Polygonal patterned ground
* Planetary nomenclature
* Scalloped topography
* Water on Mars

References

External links

Banded Flow Terrain in Hellas Basin

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