THE ORIGIN OF STRIPE-LIKE PATTERNS ON MARTIAN GULLY SLOPES; USING SVALBARD ADVENT VALLEY AS A MARS ANALOGUE.

• Stripes are a common slope features in polar regions on Earth were active layer processes (freezing/thawing and gelifluction) occur. Their origin is most likely polygenic and closely related to frost crack plygons and sorted circles with the addition of a gravitational component. Stripes are either sorted or unsorted. Features resembling stripes have been observed on slopes on Mars with or without association with polygons. Due to the current temperature and pressure regime on Mars soil moisture and active layer processes are not likely to occur. However, in recent HiRISE images stripelike patterns can be observed in proximity to gullies . Stripe width typically ranges from ~50 cm to 1.5 m, and their orientation is consistently down slope, although it can not be excluded that it sometimes slightly deviates from the steepest topographic gradient. In our study we have examined sorted and nonsorted stripes on slopes in Svalbard in order to test the working hypothesis of an cryoturbation origin for the martian stripe-like patterns. In doing so we compare their morphological characteristics, settings, and slope to those on Mars.

Subject headings

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Geovetenskap och miljövetenskap -- Naturgeografi (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Earth and Related Environmental Sciences -- Physical Geography (hsv//eng)

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Fysik -- Astronomi, astrofysik och kosmologi (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Physical Sciences -- Astronomy, Astrophysics and Cosmology (hsv//eng)

NATURVETENSKAP  -- Geovetenskap och miljövetenskap (hsv//swe)

NATURAL SCIENCES  -- Earth and Related Environmental Sciences (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Mars

Svalbard

patterned ground

periglacial

permafrost

solifluction

Publication and Content Type

vet (subject category)

kon (subject category)