Infrastructure Engineering - Theses
Permanent URI for this collection
Search Results
1 - 1 of 1
-
ItemThe channels of Mars and the Victorian basalt plains: an investigation of channel chronology( 2012)Current models of Martian channel formation postulate a sudden change in the environment during the Hesperian period. To investigate the chronology of this change, Martian channels with extensive dendritic valley networks where active volcanism was present during the late Noachian to the early Hesperian period of Mars were chosen. Using stereo-derived digital terrain model (DTM) data from the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) on the orbiter, selected ancient drainage channels on Mars were identified and compared with those on the basaltic plains in Western Victoria, identified on Victorian government digital elevation data. The elevation data from Mars and Victoria were used for stream analysis and to produce longitudinal profiles of streams. An analysis of the maturity of the Victorian stream systems was undertaken using the DEM and the concavity indices of the streams was also calculated. Observation on the maturity of selected stream systems in Victoria was undertaken and the respective sites geologically dated using K-Ar dating of the underlying basaltic plains. The Victorian stream systems are relatively immature by normal terrestrial standards having been formed after flood basalts covered the prior drainage systems. The same stream analysis was then applied to the Martian channels, where there is limited dating control. To better understand the chronology of their formation, the Martian channel concavity indices were calculated and compared to the terrestrial results. Results reveal streams dating up to 1.4 million years ago, narrowing down the time when channel formation ceased to approximately the same amount of time (1.4 Ma) after the volcanic plains were formed in the selected Martian regions.