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Dust storms, observed in all seasons, are among the most momentous of Mars' atmospheric activities. The Entry--Descent--Landing (EDL) activity of a Martian landing mission is influenced by local atmospheric conditions, especially the probability of dust storm activity. Chryse Planitia, featuring many of the largest and most prominent outflow channels and possible mud volcanoes, is an important target site for current and future Mars landing missions. It is of great significance to understand that a Mars landing probe may encounter a dust storm situation during EDL season in the Chryse Planitia. In this study, based on four Martian years, Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) Mars Daily Global Maps (MDGMs), 1172 dust storms were identified within Chryse's 1600 km-radius ring. Secondly, the daily mean dust storm probability was calculated, binned by 1° of solar longitude in the Chryse landing area. The two active periods of dust storm activity are Ls = 177-239° and Ls = 288-4°, with an average daily mean dust storm probability of 9.5% and 4.1%. Dust storm activity frequency is closely interrelated with the seasonal ebb and flow of the north polar ice cap; consequently, most dust storms occur in either the cap's growth or recession phase. We divided the Chryse landing area into square grids of 0.5° and computed the average probability of dust storm occurrence in each grid, which ranged from 0.19% to 2.42%, with an average of 1.22%. The dust storm activity probability in space was also inhomogeneous--low in the west and south but high in the east and north--which was mainly affected by the origin and the path of dust storm sequences. Based on empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis of storms in the Chryse area, 40.5% are cap-edge storms in the northern hemisphere. Finally, we concluded that the preferred time of a Mars landing mission is Ls = 18-65° in the Chryse Planitia, and three preferred landing areas were selected with low dust storm probability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, three simulations by the Mars Weather Research and Forecasting Model are compared: two 10 Martian year (MY) 2° × 2° simulations with (i) fully radiatively active dust and (ii) a prescribed dust scenario, and a (iii) 1 MY 0.5° × 0.5° simulation with prescribed dust as in (ii). From comparing (i) and (ii), we found that the impact of dust‐radiation feedback is individually different for any region. The most striking evidence are major dust lifting activities to the south of Chryse Planitia (S‐CP) seen in (i) but not in (ii). By contrast, dust lifting and deposition on the southern slopes and inside the Hellas Basin are similar in both simulations. The latter, in turn, points toward a similar near‐surface atmospheric circulation. In (iii), the total global amount of wind stress lifted dust is by a factor of ∼8 higher than in (ii), with S‐CP being a major lifting region as in (i). Nonetheless, the surface dust lifting by wind stress in (iii) may be also reduced regionally, as seen at the peak of Elysium Mons because of its unique topography. The zonal mean circulation in (i) is generally of a comparable strength to that in (ii), with exceptions in global dust storm years, when it is clearly stronger in (i), in line with a dustier atmosphere. The differences in the zonal mean circulation between (ii) and (iii) are mostly at lower altitudes and may arise because of differences in the representation of the topography. Plain Language Summary: In the Mars atmosphere, the combination of airborne dust and radiation has multiplying effects, which are termed "positive feedbacks." For instance, dust storms intensify when exposed to sun light: temperature differences between warm and cold air are enhanced and winds become stronger, that is, positive feedback. We run a Mars General Circulation Model, or more precisely, the Mars Weather Research and Forecasting Model, with and without such feedbacks. In addition, we refine the spatial resolution of the model from 2° to 0.5° latitude and longitude. Overall, we quantify the impact of feedbacks and spatial resolution on the outcome of model simulations. For that, we compare patterns of dust exchange between the surface and atmosphere between different model simulations. We find that the strength of the positive feedbacks may change considerably from place to place. For the 0.5° resolution, winds are planet wide much more effective in eroding surface dust, including an exception governed by the unique local topography at the Elysium Mons volcano. Key Points: Three MarsWRF model simulations, which differ in the treatment of dust and/or spatial resolution, are comparedDust‐radiation feedback is studied by comparing surface dust lifting between simulations with interactive and prescribed dust treatmentThe highest resolution simulation has increased surface dust lifting by the wind stress globally, but it may be also reduced locally [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Determining how global dust storms originate and develop is one of the major challenges of Martian meteorology. We model the 2018 global dust storm using the Ensemble Mars Atmosphere Reanalysis System (EMARS), combining satellite observations with a Mars global climate model via data assimilation. A reanalysis is a valuable data set for this investigation because it is anchored to the real Martian atmosphere by temperature and dust observations, and the model provides full 4D coverage of wind fields, which are not directly observed and are key to assessing advection. Dust was observed to encircle the northern hemisphere early on in the storm's development. This encirclement could be caused by either the formation of new lifting centers along the path of observed encirclement or the advection of dust from active lifting center(s) elsewhere. Results from EMARS, including particle advection from inferred EMARS winds, provide evidence that the aforementioned dust encircling Mars's northern hemisphere may come from the initial lifting center of the storm, near Chryse Planitia. We propose that dust from the initial lifting center of the storm was entrained into the Martian Hadley circulation, with the assistance of the thermal tides, and then entrained into the northern hemisphere westerly jet. Plain Language Summary: About once every three Martian years, or about once every five Earth years, a global dust storm envelops most of Mars, lasting for months. The 2018 global dust storm discussed in this paper began near the solar‐powered rover Opportunity. The large amount of dust in the air during a global dust storm can reduce sunlight so much that the Opportunity rover lost power during the 2018 storm, resulting in end of mission. Despite the effect dust has on movement of Martian air, little is known about how global dust storms form and grow. Scientists have historically considered two features of growing global dust storms to be important. One is the existence of multiple locations on Mars where dust is lifted high into the air from the surface. The other is the spreading of dust around Mars, forming a dust ring in the Martian air. We investigate the spreading by combining satellite observations with computer simulations using basic physics equations applied to air. Early in this storm's growth, dust spread eastward and formed a ring around Mars's northern hemisphere. Our computer simulations suggest that dust may have been lifted from one region near Opportunity and moved around the planet by wind. Key Points: Ensemble data assimilation is used to investigate the development of the 2018 global dust storm on MarsThe EMARS reanalysis suggests that Mars was first encircled by dust lifted from near Chryse and advected around the planetWe propose that dust encircled Mars in the early part of the storm due to the Hadley circulation, the thermal tides, and the north polar jet [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The southern part of the smooth plain of Chryse Planitia on Mars hosts a large population of kilometer‐sized (from ~0.2 to ~20 km) landforms spread over a wide area. Based on the investigation of a small part of this area, Komatsu et al. (2016, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.icarus.2015.12.032) proposed that the edifices may be the result of the subsurface sediment mobilization. We mapped the full extent of these landforms within Chryse Planitia and performed a morphological and spatial analysis in an attempt to further test this hypothesis. We identified a total number of 1,318 of these objects, which we grouped into five different morphological classes. The edifices can be observed over an area of 700,000 km2 near the termini of the large outflow channels, Ares, Simud, and Tiu Valles, with a nonrandom spatial distribution. The features are clustered and anticorrelated to the ancient highlands, which form erosional remnants shaped by the outflow events. This suggests a genetic link between the distribution of the edifices and the presence of the sedimentary deposits on which they are superposed. Such distribution is consistent with the previous notion that subsurface sediment mobilization may be the mechanism for their formation and is less consistent with the alternative igneous volcanic hypothesis. We also propose a scenario in which the large morphologic variability can be explained by variations of the water content within the ascending mud and by variations in the effusion rates. The edifices may represent one of the most prominent fields of sedimentary volcanism detected on Mars. Plain language summary: Ever since the presence of methane in the Martian atmosphere was reported from ground‐based, orbital, and in situ observations, mud volcanism was hypothesized to be a possible release mechanism, and various mud volcano fields have been tentatively identified. Although morphological similarities with Earth sedimentary volcanism have been proposed (e.g., Skinner & Mazzini, 2009, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2009.02.006), it is difficult, however, to prove unambiguously the presence of mud volcanism in remote sensing data, and some of the reported mud volcanoes have alternatively been interpreted as igneous volcanoes. A definitive identification of sedimentary volcanoes on Mars is therefore still problematic. A useful candidate area to test the hypothesis of sedimentary volcanism on Mars is a field of kilometer‐sized cone‐ and pie‐like landforms in the southern part of the large ancient Chryse impact basin, part of which was previously studied by Komatsu et al. (2016, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.icarus.2015.12.032). In this study, we searched for those landforms inside Chryse Planitia and determined their full spatial extent. We found that they can be divided into five morphologically different groups and that they occur exclusively on the level sedimentary plains. These findings enable us providing additional evidence to support the hypothesis of subsurface sediment mobilization as a possible mechanism for their formation. Key Points: Southern Chryse Planitia contains a large field of Amazonian‐aged extrusive landforms, which can be grouped into five classesThey are exclusively located in the sedimentary plains between erosional remnants suggesting that they were formed by sedimentary volcanismThe variability in shapes can be explained by properties of the mud and environment [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Orbital data support the hypothesis that Hypanis could be the largest delta on Mars. • A capping unit protected gently dipping sedimentary beds. • This work might support previous claims of a Chryse sea during the late Noachian. Abstract We investigated the origin of the fan-shaped deposit at the end of Hypanis Valles that has previously been proposed as an ExoMars, Mars 2020, and human mission candidate landing site, and found evidence that the landform is an ancient delta. Previous work suggests that the deposit originated from a time of fluvial activity both distinct from and prior to catastrophic outflow, and crater counting placed the deposit's age at ≥ 3.6 Ga. We found over 30 thin sedimentary strata in the proposed delta wall, and from our slope analysis conclude that the fluvial sequence is consistent with a lowering/retreating shoreline. We measured nearly horizontal bedding dip angles ranging from 0° to 2° over long stretches of cliff and bench exposures seen in HiRISE images and HiRISE stereo DTMs. From THEMIS night IR images we determined that the fan-shaped deposit has a low thermal inertia (150–240 Jm−2K−1s−1/2) and the surrounding darker-toned units correspond to thermal inertia values as high as 270–390 Jm−2K−1s−1/2. We interpret these findings to indicate that the fan-shaped deposit consists mostly of silt-sized and possibly finer grains, and that the extremely low grade and large lateral extent of these beds implies that the depositional environment was calm and relatively long-lived. Our assessment of the geomorphology and composition seems to indicate that the alluvial fan and mudflow hypotheses are less compatible. From our stratigraphic mapping we interpret the order of events which shaped the region. After the Chryse impact, sediment filled the basin, a confined lake or sea formed allowing a large delta to be deposited near its shoreline, the water level receded to the north, darker sedimentary/volcanic units covered the region and capped the light-toned deposit as hydro-volcanic eruptions shaped the interior of Lederberg crater, freeze/thaw cycles and desiccation induced local fracturing, and finally wrinkle ridges associated with rounded cones warped the landscape following trends in degraded crater rims and existing tectonic features. The ancient deltaic deposit we observe today was largely untouched by subsequent catastrophic outflows, and its surface has been only moderately reshaped by over 3 billion years of aeolian erosion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hellas Planitia is one of the major topographic sinks on Mars for the deposition of any kind of sediments. We report on our observations of sheet deposits in the eastern part of the basin that are apparently related to the Dao Vallis outflow channel. The deposits have lobate flow fronts and a thickness of a few decameters. Despite their generally smooth surface, some distinctive textures and patterns can be identified, such as longitudinal lineations, distributive channels, and polygons. We compared these deposits to other sheet deposits on Mars and tested three hypotheses of their origin: volcanic flows as well as water- and ice-related mass wastings. Despite some similarities to volcanic sheet flows on Mars, we found several morphological characteristics that are not known for sheet lava flows; for example conically arranged lineations and channel systems very similar to fluvial incisions. We also reject an ice-related formation similar to terrestrial rock-ice avalanches, as there is no sufficient relief energy to explain their extent and location. A water-related origin appears most consistent with our observations, and we favor an emplacement by fluvially-driven mass wasting processes, e.g., debris flows. Assuming a water-related origin, we calculated the amount of water that would be required to deposit such large sedimentary bodies for different flow types. Our calculations show a large range of possible water volumes, from 64 to 2,042 km³, depending on the specific flow mechanism. The close link to Dao Vallis makes these deposits a unique place to study the deposition of outflow channel sediments, as the deposits of other outflow channels on Mars, such as those around Chryse Planitia, are mostly buried by younger sediments and volcanic flows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bright and dark wind streaks across Mars record wind patterns related to atmospheric circulation. In some cases these streaks represent erosion of a surface veneer; in others, they indicate sand grains mobilized by strong vortices shed off of positive relief, such as crater rims. While many streaks change length or orientation over time, others not only remain unchanged but also may indicate a completely different wind direction. These permanent streaks could reflect past circulation patterns in response to conditions related to orbital forcing (e.g., Thomas and Veverka, 1979; Veverka et al., 1981). Here, however, we focus on a subset of permanent wind streaks unrelated to global circulation, rather to impact-generated winds that can extend more than 500 km away from the crater. Nighttime images from the Mars Odyssey's Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) reveal certain large craters (> 15 km in diameter) having sets of thermally bright streaks that radiate from certain fresh impact craters. These streaks extend from pre-existing topographic highs (crater rims, wrinkle ridges) beyond the continuous ejecta deposits to more than 6 crater radii, unrelated to secondary craters. For illustration, this contribution primarily focuses on the 20 km-diameter Santa Fe crater in Chryse Planitia. Context Camera (CTX) images reveal that these streaks correspond to zones of erosion. The thermally bright rays in nighttime images correlate with regions where coarser materials have been exposed, not always resolved even in HiRISE images. Models of the impact process indicate impact-generated vapor most likely generated intense winds that scoured the region, well before arrival of secondary craters and later ejecta run-out flows. Pre-existing relief (such as crater rims) disturbed this flow and generated intense cross-flow instabilities resulting in long parallel streaks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We conclude our radar imaging survey of Mars, which maps spatial variations in depolarized radar reflectivity using Arecibo S-band (λ12.6 cm) observations from 2005–2012. Whereas our earlier paper (Harmon et al., 2012, Arecibo radar imagery of Mars: the major volcanic provinces. Icarus 220, 990–1030) covered the volcanic regions of Tharsis, Elysium, and Amazonis, this paper includes non-volcanic regions where hydrologic and impact processes can be the dominant resurfacing agents affecting radar backscatter. Many of the more prominent and interesting radar-bright features outside the major volcanic provinces are located in and around Chryse Planitia and Xanthe Terra. These features are identified with: a basin in northeast Lunae Planum containing the combined deposits from Maja Vallis and Ganges Catena outflows; channel outwash plains in western and southern Chryse basin; plateaus bordering chasma/chaos zones, where surface modification may have resulted from hydrologic action associated with incipient chaos formation; and some bright-ejecta craters in Chryse basin, of a type otherwise rare on Mars. Dark-halo craters have also been identified in Chryse and elsewhere that are similar to those seen in the volcanic provinces. Although the cratered highlands are relatively radar-bland, they do exhibit some bright depolarized features; these include eroded crater rims, several unusual ejecta flows and impact melts, and terrain-softened plains. The rims of large impact basins (Hellas, Argyre, Isidis) show a variety of radar-bright features provisionally identified with massif slopes, erosion sediments, eroded pyroclastics, impact melts, and glacial deposits. The interiors of these basins are largely radar-dark, which is consistent with coverage by rock-free sediments. Tempe Terra and Acheron Fossae show bright features possibly associated with rift volcanism or eroded tectonic structures, and northwest Tempe Terra shows one very bright feature associated with glacial or other ice processes in the dichotomy boundary region. The first delay-Doppler images of the radar-bright features from the north and south polar icecaps are presented. Both poles show the circular polarization inversion and high reflectivity characteristic of coherent volume backscatter from relatively clean ice. The south polar feature is primarily backscatter from the residual CO 2 icecap (with a lesser contribution from the polar layered deposits), whose finite optical depth probably accounts for the feature's strong S/X-band wavelength dependence. Conversely, the north polar radar feature appears to be mostly backscatter from the H 2 O-ice-rich polar layered deposits rather than from the thin residual H 2 O cap. The north polar region shows additional radar-bright features from Korolev Crater and a few other outlying circumpolar ice deposits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Catastrophic floods of enormous proportions played a major role in the excavation of some of the Solar System׳s largest channels, the circum-Chryse outflow channels. The generation of the floods has been attributed to both the evacuation of regional highland aquifers and ancient paleo-lakes. Numerous investigators indicate that these source regions were likely recharged and pressurized by eastward groundwater flow via conduits extending thousands of kilometers from an elevated groundwater table in the Tharsis volcanic rise. This hypothesis remains controversial, largely because subsequent stages of Valles Marineris development and enlargement would have resulted in the widespread destruction of the proposed groundwater pathways. Here, we show that Noctis Labyrinthus, a unique system of troughs connecting the Tharsis volcanic rise and western Valles Marineris, retains geologic evidence of conduit development associated with structurally-controlled groundwater flow through salt-rich upper crustal deposits. The inferred groundwater flow spatial pattern is in agreement with aquifer drainage from the Tharsis volcanic rise region. Our investigation indicates that subsequent surface collapse over these conduits during the Hesperian Period resulted in the generation of large basins in the central and eastern regions of Noctis Labyrinthus, and contributed to chasmata formation in the western portion of Valles Marineris. The lava-covered floors of these basins, dated by previous workers as Late Amazonian, contain hydrated mineral deposits coexisting spatially with decameter-scale features that we interpret to be lacustrine and periglacial in origin. The proposed paleo-lake sites also include chaotic terrains, which could comprise groundwater discharge zones, pointing to regional hydrologic processes that likely operated from the Early Hesperian until a few tens of millions of years ago. Episodic fluidized discharges from eastern Noctis Labyrinthus troughs delivered vast volumes of sediments and volatiles into western Valles Marineris, contributing to the construction of a regional volatile-rich stratigraphy. Intermittent formation of lakes within regional tectono-volcanic basins could have lasted hundreds of millions of years, thus, we highlight the potential of Noctis Labyrinthus as a region of prime interest for astrobiological exploration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Small edifice features that are less than a few kilometers in diameter and up to a few hundred meters in height are widely distributed in Chryse Planitia on Mars. They exhibit a broad range of morphological properties that are here classified as Type 1 (steep-sided cones typically with a summit crater), Type 2 (nearly flat features with single or multiple central/summit craters or cones) and Type 3 (nearly circular features in plan view, characterized by steep sides and a broadly flat summit area). Their origins have not been determined with certainty, but our study utilizing the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) images supports the interpretation of mud volcanism, based on the observed morphological characteristics of these small edifices and comparisons with terrestrial analogs. Additionally, hydrated minerals detected on these edifice features in data from the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM), further support the mud volcano hypothesis. Injection features such as clastic mega-pipes and sand blow features may coexist with the mud volcanoes. Alternative mechanisms such as magmatic volcanism are not excluded, but they have less support from our remote sensing observations. Further confirmation or rejection of the mud volcano hypothesis will require in-situ investigation by landers or rovers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the climatology of “textured dust storms”, those dust storms that have visible structure on their cloud tops that are indicative of active dust lifting, as observed in Mars Daily Global Maps produced from Mars Orbiter Camera wide-angle images. Textured dust storms predominantly occur in the equinox seasons while both solstice periods experience a planet-wide “pause” in textured dust storm activity. These pauses correspond to concurrent decreases in global atmospheric dust opacity. Textured dust storms most frequently occur in Acidalia Planitia, Chryse Planitia, Arcadia Planitia, and Hellas basin. To examine the nature of the link between textured dust storms and atmospheric dust opacity, we compare the textured dust storm climatology with a record of atmospheric dust opacity and find a peak global correlation coefficient of approximately 0.5 with a lag of 20–40° in solar longitude in the opacity compared to the solar climatology. This implies that textured dust storms observed at 1400 local time by MOC are responsible for a large fraction of atmospheric dust opacity and that other mechanisms (e.g., dust devil lifting or storm-scale lifting not observed in this study) may supply a comparable amount of dust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The role of lava tube networks and lava channels is reassessed as the primordial stage of the volcano-erosional processes that formed the Labyrinthus Noctis–Valles Marineris system instead of a tectonic origin. The combined use of CTX, CRISM, HiRISE imagery, and MOLA profiles has provided valuable insight in the evolution of pit chains into fossae first and then chasmata later due to mass wasting processes caused by the erosional effect of the lava flows that draped Valles Marineris and other outflow channels. Although a quantitative evaluation of eruption rates is difficult even with digital terrain models (DTMs) because of the mixing between new flows and paleoflows, a comparison with Elysium and other Tharsis outflow channels suggests that the availability of lava supply is correlated to their widths. The images of ubiquitous lava flows rather than sporadic light-toned deposits strengthen the role of lava over that of water in the erosional processes that formed Labyrinthus Noctis and carved Valles Marineris like many other outflow channel on Mars. The erosional evolution of the outflow channels shows an increasing trend of age and a decreasing trend of depth from the sources on Tharsis to the mouths at Chryse Planitia. This finding, coupled with the observation of lava flows mantling Chryse Planitia, may have profound implications for the water inventories thought to have filled the lowlands with an ocean. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper presents the hypothesis that the well-known giant polygons and bright mounds of the martian lowlands may be related to a common process-a process of fluid expulsion that results from burial of fine-grained sediments beneath a body of water. Specifically, we hypothesize that giant polygons and mounds in Chryse and Acidalia Planitiae are analogous to kilometer-scale polygons and mud volcanoes in terrestrial, marine basins and that the co-occurrence of masses of these features in Chryse and Acidalia may be the signature of sedimentary processes in an ancient martian ocean. We base this hypothesis on recent data from both Earth and Mars. On Earth, 3-D seismic data illustrate kilometer-scale polygons that may be analogous to the giant polygons on Mars. The terrestrial polygons form in fine-grained sediments that have been deposited and buried in passive-margin, marine settings. These polygons are thought to result from compaction/dewatering, and they are commonly associated with fluid expulsion features, such as mud volcanoes. On Mars, in Chryse and Acidalia Planitiae, orbital data demonstrate that giant polygons and mounds have overlapping spatial distributions. There, each set of features occurs within a geological setting that is seemingly analogous to that of the terrestrial, kilometer-scale polygons (broad basin of deposition, predicted fine-grained sediments, and lack of significant horizontal stress). Regionally, the martian polygons and mounds both show a correlation to elevation, as if their formation were related to past water levels. Although these observations are based on older data with incomplete coverage, a similar correlation to elevation has been established in one local area studied in detail with newer higher-resolution data. Further mapping with the latest data sets should more clearly elucidate the relationship(s) of the polygons and mounds to elevation over the entire Chryse-Acidalia region and thereby provide more insight into this hypothesis. Key Words: Mars-Ocean-Giant polygons-Mounds-Lowlands-Chryse-Acidalia-Mud volcano. Astrobiology 12, 601-615. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]