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Although we have seen that Mars has little (if not) water for a human colonization on a large scale, it still offers many opportunities for future explorations. These are related to the potential richness of its minerals, both on the surface and its subsurface, and a challenging environment where to test technological solutions for the exploitation of inhospitable worlds. We explore new methodologies for a drier extraction of minerals, with respect to current methods used in the mining industry on Earth, and existing concepts of human colony based on in-situ resource utilization (ISRU). 3D printing techniques will allow construction of buildings from the volcanic materials available on the surface of Mars.

Mars displays a variety of volcanic structures, thus giving us insight into the variety of volcanic eruption processes and lava flow morphologies. These eruption processes, from plumbing systems, supply rates, and magma mineralogy can all affect the eruption style. Understanding these different types of eruption styles represents a distinct geophysical process on Mars that in some cases resemble volcanic systems of Earth. The similarities are in the gas exsolution from magmas at shallow depth, but then depends on factors such as composition, volatile content, and temperature. The ascent of the magma can form dikes and sills, which may undergo chemical and physical evolution, which can then lead to a diversification of volcanic activity and lava flow viscosity. This chapter explores our current understanding of eruptive styles, magma reservoirs, and flow textures across Mars with a look at the thermodynamical perspectives of lava flow morphology.

Highland paterae are broad, low-sloped volcanoes on Mars that have a large summit caldera and channeled flanks. Crater-modeled ages suggest they may represent some of the oldest central vent volcanoes on the planet. The presence of channeled flanks that surround a younger summit caldera with topographically smooth floor material has led to the interpretation that highland paterae record a transition from explosive volcanic eruptions to more effusive eruptive styles. In this chapter we describe the geology of seven highland paterae (Amphitrites Patera, Peneus Patera, Malea Patera, Pityusa Patera, Tyrrhena Patera, Hadriaca Patera, and Apollinaris Mons), discuss what that reveals about their history and origin, and then discuss possible avenues of future research on these intriguing Martian landforms.

Our knowledge of the formation and evolution of the Martian surface, and thus the fate of its volcanic regions, are revealed in the mineralogy of the crust (as observed by orbiters and landers) and the chemistry hidden within Martian meteorites. The composition of the Martian crust has been estimated from SNC (shergottite—nakhlite—chassignite) meteorites, which are chemically similar to terrestrial basalts. However, these meteorites reveal a complexity in other mineralogies, such as the silicic implications for volcanism across Mars. Although the exact locations of such SNCs are difficult to discern, the variety of geochemical data from these meteorites gives us a clue as to the mineralogical regions, and thus probable varieties of volcanism on Mars. In this chapter, we will explore the Martian meteorites and their clues to the Martian volcanic regions and crustal components of the North–South dichotomy.

The composition of two dune fields, Ogygis Undae and the NE–SW trending dune field in Gale crater (the “Bagnold Dune Field” and “Western Dune Field”), were analyzed using thermal emission spectra from the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) and the Mars Odyssey Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS). The Gale crater dune field was used as a baseline as other orbital compositional analyses have been conducted, and in situ sampling results will soon be available. Results from unmixing thermal emission spectra showed a spatial variation between feldspar mineral abundances and pyroxene mineral abundances in Ogygis Undae. Other datasets, including nighttime thermal inertia values, also showed variation throughout the dune field. One explanation proposed for this variation is a bimodal distribution of two sand populations. This distribution is seen in some terrestrial dune fields. The two dune fields varied in both mineral types present and in uniformity of composition. These differences point to different source lithologies and different distances travelled from source material. Examining these differences further will allow for a greater understanding of aeolian processes on Mars.

We present a comprehensive global catalog of the geomorphological features with clear or potential relevance to subsurface ice identified during the Dawn spacecraft's primary and first extended missions at Ceres. We define eight broad feature classes and describe analyses supporting their genetic links to subsurface ice. These classes include relaxed craters; central pit craters; large domes; small mounds; lobate landslides and ejecta; pitted materials; depressions and scarps; and fractures, grooves, and channels. Features in all classes are widely distributed on the dwarf planet, consistent with multiple lines of observational evidence that ice is a key component of Ceres' crust. Independent analyses of multiple feature types suggest rheological and compositional layering may be common in the upper 10 km of the crust. Clustering of features indicates that ice concentration is heterogeneous on nearly all length scales, from 1 km to hundreds of kilometers. Impacts are likely the key driver of heterogeneity, causing progressive devolatilization of the low latitude and midlatitude crust on billion-year timescales but also producing localized enhancements in near surface ice content via excavation of deep ice-rich material and possible facilitation of cryomagmatic and cryovolcanic activity. Impacts and landslides may be the dominant mechanism for ice loss on modern Ceres. Our analysis suggests specific locations where future high-resolution imaging can be used to probe (1) current volatile loss rates and (2) the history of putative cryomagmatic and cryovolcanic features. The Cerean cryosphere and its unique morphology promise to be a rich subject of ongoing research for years to come.