Geomorphological Processes on Terrestrial Planetary Surfaces

Sharp, Robert P.

doi:10.1146/annurev.ea.08.050180.001311

Cited by 30 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 151 publications

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“…Also found in the Elysium region, primarily to the northwest of Elysium Mons, are a number of sinuous depressions. Some of these features strongly resemble lunar sinuous rilles [Carr, 1981] ably erosional or fluvial in origin [Sharp, 1980;Carr, 1981;Baker, 1982;Mouqinis-Mark et al, 1984]. Because these sinuous features do not likely have a significant tectonic component to their origin, they are not considered further here.…”

Section: The Association Of the Linear Depressions Of Elysium Fossaementioning

confidence: 99%

Elysium Region, Mars: Tests of lithospheric loading models for the formation of tectonic features

1986

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The. ce.c.c•ncl largest volcanic province on Mar• lies in the E!?ium region I•ike the larger Tharsis province, Elysium is marked by a topographic rise and a broad free air gravity anomaly and also exhibits a complex assortment of tectonic and volcanic features. We test the hypothesis that the tectonic features in the Elysium region are the product of stresses produced by loading of the Martian lithosphere. We consider loading at three different scales: local loading by individual volcanoes, regional loading of the lithosphere from above or below, and quasi-global loading by Tharsis. A comparison of flexural stresses with lithospheric strength and with the inferred maximum depth of faulting confirms that concentric graben around Elysium Mons can be explained as resulting from local flexure of an elastic lithosphere about 50 km thick in response to the volcano load. Volcanic loading on a regional scale, however, leads to predicted stresses inconsistent with all observed tectonic features, suggesting that loading by widespread emplacement of thick plains deposits was not an important factor in the tectonic evolution of the Elysium region. A number of linear extensional features oriented generally NW-SE may have been the result of flexural uplift of the lithosphere on the scale of the Elysium rise. The global stress field associated with the support of the Tharsis rise appears to have influenced the development of many of the tectonic features in the Elysium region, including Cerberus Rupes and the systems of ridges,in eastern and western Elysium. The comparisons of stress models for Elysium with the preserved tectonic features support a succession of stress fields operating at different times in the region. While the order in which those stress fields operated cannot be determined from present geological observations, thermal and mechanical arguments favor the hypothesis that any flexural uplift of the lithosphere by a mantle thermal anomaly preceded or occurred contemporaneously with emplacement of the largest volcanic loads. 11,377

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Section: The Association Of the Linear Depressions Of Elysium Fossaementioning

confidence: 99%

Elysium Region, Mars: Tests of lithospheric loading models for the formation of tectonic features

1986

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“…The ongoing NASA program devoted to analysis of Mars has generated an enormous volume of research that revealed insights about a variety of Earth processes and landforms, including wind action, catastrophic flooding, thermokarst, sapping, mass movements, drainage and valley evolution, and volcanic landscapes (for reviews see Sharp, 1980;Baker, 1981Baker, , 1982. The multitude of papers resulting from this program established a solid basis for comparative process analyses.…”

Section: The Emphasis In Modern Geomorphologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Landscape analysis and the search for geomorphic unity

Ritter¹

1990

Centennial Articles

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Geomorphology has been an integral part of geological science since the inception of the Geological Society of America, even though different investigative goals have existed continuously in the discipline. The dichotomy of purpose began with the vastly different perception of landscape analysis embraced by William Morris Davis and G. K. Gilbert. Historical and physical geomorphic studies have always been conducted simultaneously, but one of these research activities has dominated the field at any given time. During the first half of this century, most geomorphic work was devoted to the interpretation of longterm, evolutionary history of regional landscapes. In the past four decades, however, research has concentrated on the study of geomorphic processes. This revised direction placed greater emphasis on the physical component of geomorphology and provided a more complete understanding of the time factor in landscape analysis. Historical geomorphology is now less concerned with theories of cyclic-time landscape development and more involved in determining the time and sequence of shorter episodes of geomorphic disequilibrium caused by tectonism and/or climate change.The tenor of future research in surficial geology will require input from both physical and historical geomorphology, and therefore a greater unity of purpose among geomorphologists can be expected. Geomorphologists will have the opportunity to provide geologists and engineers with useful data about major scientific and technical problems related to plate-tectonic theory, interpretation of the stratigraphic record, and prediction of landform stability for environmental planning.

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“…Obviously, both the science of geomorphology and its name derive from a historical tradition of studying the land surface of Earth. Yet, discoveries from recent solar system explorations invite, if not compel, the extraterrestrial extension of the subject (Sharp, 1980: Baker, 1984, 1985a, 1993. Of the 'top ten' most cited geomorphology papers of the last quarter of the 20th century, two were directly concerned with topics in extraterrestrial geomorphology (Dorn, 2002).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Planetary landscape systems: a limitless frontier

Baker

2008

Earth Surf Processes Landf

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If it is to be a complete science of landforms and landscapes, geomorphology is not appropriately limited geographically to the terrestrial portions of Earth's surface. Various systems of landforms and their generative processes are best understood in a full planetary context. Moreover, by extending its purview to include the nature of landscapes on Earth-like planets, geomorphological inquiry is not appropriately limited in its philosophical presumptions to the reductionist views that have so successfully guided much of physics. Holistic thinking, exemplified by some aspects of evolutionary biology, and a systems framework may prove to be particularly fruitful for understanding future extraterrestrial discoveries and the general nature of landforms and landscapes. Figure 1. Incised meanders and inset channel of Nanedi Vallis, Mars (Latitude 5·2°N, Longitude 311·8°E). This image from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter shows a scene 6 km wide.discovery (Baker et al., 1992). Here, another important aspect of analogical reasoning comes into play. If we provisionally accept an analogy as true, then we must infer what would be expected in a planetary system that would be consistent with that presumption. Obviously, we then need to see if the expected associations are indeed present. For an aqueous origin of Venus channels to be reasonable we would expect many other water-related landforms to be present on Venus. However, Venus is dominated by volcanic landforms; there are no associated water-related landforms, other than the channels, all of which exist in volcanic contexts. Figure 2. Lobate debris apron (relict, debris-covered glacial lobe) in Deuteronilus Mensae, Mars (Latitude 39·8°N, Longitude 23·1°E). This HiRISE image shows a scene 6 km wide. Glacial flow features (Kargel, 2004) indicate ice movement converging at the top of the scene (north) and extending toward the lower left, and terminating in a lobate flow front. Profiles for similar lobate debris aprons are consistent with solid state deformation of ice up to a few hundred metres thick (Mangold and Allemand, 2001).Figure 3.Dendritic network on Titan revealed on a mosaic of three images acquired by the Huygens Descent Imager. The width of the imaged scene is approximately 6·5 km. The scene has been stretched to enhance the contrast between the relatively dark channels and the brighter upland terrains into which they are incised.

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Geomorphological Processes on Terrestrial Planetary Surfaces

Cited by 30 publications

References 151 publications

Elysium Region, Mars: Tests of lithospheric loading models for the formation of tectonic features

Elysium Region, Mars: Tests of lithospheric loading models for the formation of tectonic features

Landscape analysis and the search for geomorphic unity

Planetary landscape systems: a limitless frontier

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