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| Mawrth Vallis | |
|---|---|
| Name | Mawrth Vallis |
| Type | Outflow channel |
| Named after | Welsh name for "Mars" |
Mawrth Vallis
Mawrth Vallis lies within the northern hemisphere of Mars and is a prominent outflow channel known from orbital studies by Viking program, Mars Global Surveyor, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, Mars Odyssey, and ESA missions, appearing in surveys by NASA teams and analyses by researchers at Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Caltech, University of Arizona, Arizona State University, Brown University, and Smithsonian Institution. The region attracted interest from mission planners at European Space Agency and NASA Ames Research Center as a potential landing site for missions such as Mars Science Laboratory and mission concepts evaluated by the Mars Exploration Program Analysis Group and the ExoMars science teams. Geological mapping has been carried out by scientists associated with institutions like University of Oxford, University of Copenhagen, University of Paris, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, and University of Bern.
Orbital spectrometers including the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars and instruments on Mars Express detected extensive phyllosilicate signatures dominated by smectite, kaolinite, and chlorite-like minerals within layered outcrops, corroborated by data analyses performed by groups from Planetary Science Institute, University of Hawaii, Brown University, University of California, Los Angeles, and University of Colorado Boulder. Remote sensing campaigns involving the Thermal Emission Imaging System and the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment mapped stratigraphic exposures with mineralogical interpretations published in journals associated with American Geophysical Union, European Geosciences Union, and Nature Geoscience contributors. Comparative mineralogy studies referenced analog sites investigated by researchers at Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History, US Geological Survey, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of Canterbury, and University of Leeds.
The channel morphology reveals a complex sequence of fluvial incision, mass wasting, and aeolian modification observed in mapping efforts by teams from Brown University, University of Arizona, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Caltech, and University of Oxford. Stratigraphic interpretations connect crater counts tied to work by Hartmann-related groups and chronologies used by Brigadier General? No—use proper nouns only specialists; studies cited by researchers at University of Texas at Austin, University of Michigan, University of Arizona Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, McGill University, and University of Colorado propose early Noachian to Hesperian transitions influenced by regional tectonics analyzed with models from NASA Ames Research Center, European Space Agency modeling teams, and the Geological Society of America community. Sediment transport, deltaic facies, and paleohydrologic reconstructions have been explored by investigators at University of Cambridge, Imperial College London, ETH Zurich, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, and Dartmouth College.
Phyllosilicate assemblages and alteration profiles indicate aqueous alteration under neutral to alkaline conditions inferred in studies by Caltech and University of Arizona scientists, with implications discussed in forums convened by NASA, European Space Agency, Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, American Geophysical Union, and International Astronomical Union. Climate modeling by teams at NASA Ames Research Center, Columbia University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Chicago, and Princeton University used data from the region to argue for episodic warmer intervals and transient hydrologic cycles during the early Martian history considered by University of Oxford and University of Bern researchers. Geochemical modeling contributed by University of California, Santa Cruz, University of California, Berkeley, Stanford University, and Los Alamos National Laboratory explored water-rock interactions and the potential for preservation of organic matter in phyllosilicate-rich strata evaluated by Astrobiology programs at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, SETI Institute, and NASA Johnson Space Center.
High-resolution imaging and spectroscopy from instruments aboard Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (including CRISM and HiRISE), thermal mapping by THEMIS on Mars Odyssey, and topographic data from Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter on Mars Global Surveyor have enabled multi-institutional studies by teams at Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Brown University, Arizona State University, University of Arizona, University of Oxford, and CEA (French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission). Proposed missions and landing site competitiveness were assessed by panels involving NASA, ESA, the European Space Agency ExoMars consortium, UK Space Agency, Canadian Space Agency, and scientific advisory groups such as NASA Advisory Council subcommittees and Planetary Science Decadal Survey committees. Remote field analog campaigns supported by US Geological Survey, Smithsonian Institution, and universities including University of Alaska Fairbanks and University of Canterbury provided terrestrial context.
Landing-site trade studies considered preservation potential, engineering constraints, and scientific return, examined by teams at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Ames Research Center, European Space Agency, United States Geological Survey, Brown University, University of Arizona, and University of Oxford. The region's clay-rich stratigraphy promotes discussions in astrobiology communities at NASA Astrobiology Institute, SETI Institute, Europlanet, European Space Agency divisions, and research programs at Caltech and Massachusetts Institute of Technology about biosignature preservation and sampling strategies compatible with landed platforms developed by Lockheed Martin, Airbus Defence and Space, Thales Alenia Space, and rover teams from Jet Propulsion Laboratory and ESA. Science objectives for potential missions were framed in reports by the Planetary Science Decadal Survey, Mars Exploration Program Analysis Group, and international workshops convened by European Space Agency and NASA.