HF (high frequency) radar sounder technology has been developed for several missions of Mars surface/subsurface exploration. This paper presents a model of rough surface and stratified sub-surfaces to describe the mul...HF (high frequency) radar sounder technology has been developed for several missions of Mars surface/subsurface exploration. This paper presents a model of rough surface and stratified sub-surfaces to describe the multi-layer structure of Mars polar deposits. Based on numerical simulation of radar echoes from rough surface/stratified interfaces, an inversion approach is developed to obtain the parameters of Polar Layered Deposits, i.e. layers thickness and dielectric constants. As a validation example, the SHARAD radar sounder data of the Promethei Lingula of Mars South Polar region is adopted for parameters inversion. The result of stratification is also analyzed and compared with the optical photo of the deep cliff of Chasma Australe canyon. Dielectric inversions show that the deposit media are not uniform, and the dielectric constants of the Promethei Lingula surfaces are large, and become reduced around the depth of 20 m - 30 m, below where most of the deposits are nearly pure ice, except a few thin layers with a lot of dust.展开更多
The Elysium Planitia,located in the transition zone between the northern and southern hemispheres,is one of the key areas for studying the stratigraphic structure and geological history of Mars.Previous studies have s...The Elysium Planitia,located in the transition zone between the northern and southern hemispheres,is one of the key areas for studying the stratigraphic structure and geological history of Mars.Previous studies have shown that this plain has undergone complex surface modification processes including fluvial and volcanic processes,and systematic progress has been made in the study of macro-geological processes.However,there are relatively few studies on the regional structure of the plain,which restricts our understanding of the regional geological processes.A buried impact crater in the central part of the Elysium Planitia could have recorded the surface modification process since the formation of the impact crater,however,it is difficult to distinguish the subsurface stratigraphy due to the weak orbital radar reflection signal.In this study,we denoised Shallow Radar data and obtained a radargram with clear subsurface reflectors.We estimated the permittivity of subsurface materials via a multilayer reflection model.The results show that two subsurface reflectors divide the structure of the buried impact crater into three layers(overlying layer,underlying layer,and bottom layer).The shallow subsurface reflector covers almost the whole impact crater,while the deep subsurface reflector covers only the southwest part of the impact crater.Combining the permittivity inversion results with the geological background of lava activity in the Elysium Planitia area,we argue that the overlying layer may be a mixture of regolith and lava flow with low density,while the underlying layer and bottom layer are dense lava flows.The reflector between the underlying layer and bottom layer is probably a thin deposit derived from weathering between two lava activities,and its possible formation mechanism is as follows:the crater rim and peripheral ejecta has undergone relatively strong wind erosion and the eroded material was transport to the southwestern part of the impact crater,forming continuous thin deposits,between the emplacements of two lava flows.This is consistent with the wind erosion environment prevailing at low latitudes in the Late Amazonian of Mars.This study uses processed orbital radar data,dielectric property inversion,and geological structure interpretation of regional buried impact craters as a local example to demonstrate how radar data can be used to understand regional depositional processes,and it serves as a reference for studying the geological history of similar regional structures on Mars.展开更多
文摘HF (high frequency) radar sounder technology has been developed for several missions of Mars surface/subsurface exploration. This paper presents a model of rough surface and stratified sub-surfaces to describe the multi-layer structure of Mars polar deposits. Based on numerical simulation of radar echoes from rough surface/stratified interfaces, an inversion approach is developed to obtain the parameters of Polar Layered Deposits, i.e. layers thickness and dielectric constants. As a validation example, the SHARAD radar sounder data of the Promethei Lingula of Mars South Polar region is adopted for parameters inversion. The result of stratification is also analyzed and compared with the optical photo of the deep cliff of Chasma Australe canyon. Dielectric inversions show that the deposit media are not uniform, and the dielectric constants of the Promethei Lingula surfaces are large, and become reduced around the depth of 20 m - 30 m, below where most of the deposits are nearly pure ice, except a few thin layers with a lot of dust.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.41941002)the Key Research Program of the Institute of Geology and Geophysics,CAS(Grant No.IGGCAS-202203)+1 种基金the Key Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences(Grant No.ZDBS-SSW-TLC001)the Open Research Program of the International Research Center of Big Data for Sustainable Development Goals(Grant No.CBAS2022GSP06)。
文摘The Elysium Planitia,located in the transition zone between the northern and southern hemispheres,is one of the key areas for studying the stratigraphic structure and geological history of Mars.Previous studies have shown that this plain has undergone complex surface modification processes including fluvial and volcanic processes,and systematic progress has been made in the study of macro-geological processes.However,there are relatively few studies on the regional structure of the plain,which restricts our understanding of the regional geological processes.A buried impact crater in the central part of the Elysium Planitia could have recorded the surface modification process since the formation of the impact crater,however,it is difficult to distinguish the subsurface stratigraphy due to the weak orbital radar reflection signal.In this study,we denoised Shallow Radar data and obtained a radargram with clear subsurface reflectors.We estimated the permittivity of subsurface materials via a multilayer reflection model.The results show that two subsurface reflectors divide the structure of the buried impact crater into three layers(overlying layer,underlying layer,and bottom layer).The shallow subsurface reflector covers almost the whole impact crater,while the deep subsurface reflector covers only the southwest part of the impact crater.Combining the permittivity inversion results with the geological background of lava activity in the Elysium Planitia area,we argue that the overlying layer may be a mixture of regolith and lava flow with low density,while the underlying layer and bottom layer are dense lava flows.The reflector between the underlying layer and bottom layer is probably a thin deposit derived from weathering between two lava activities,and its possible formation mechanism is as follows:the crater rim and peripheral ejecta has undergone relatively strong wind erosion and the eroded material was transport to the southwestern part of the impact crater,forming continuous thin deposits,between the emplacements of two lava flows.This is consistent with the wind erosion environment prevailing at low latitudes in the Late Amazonian of Mars.This study uses processed orbital radar data,dielectric property inversion,and geological structure interpretation of regional buried impact craters as a local example to demonstrate how radar data can be used to understand regional depositional processes,and it serves as a reference for studying the geological history of similar regional structures on Mars.
