Publications
Filter Total Items: 988
Cave climate 100 meters below the surface in the pseudokarst of the Kilauea Southwest Rift Zone, Hawaii Cave climate 100 meters below the surface in the pseudokarst of the Kilauea Southwest Rift Zone, Hawaii
Kīlauea volcano hosts numerous pit craters that are inferred to have formed in competent bedrock (lava flows with minor tephra and other sediments), including Wood Valley Pit Crater. The Wood Valley Pit Crater is a 50-meter-deep, nearly circular pit that includes access to a cave entrance, which provides an opportunity to monitor cave climate throughout a cave that is ordinarily...
Authors
Timothy N. Titus, Glen E. Cushing, Chris Okubo, Kaj E. Williams
Ice cave climate monitoring at Sunset Crater National Monument, Arizona Ice cave climate monitoring at Sunset Crater National Monument, Arizona
The purpose of this project was to monitor the cave climate of the Sunset Crater National Monument “Bonito Flow” Ice Cave. The main purpose of the climate monitoring was to determine if “Ice Cave” was still an ice cave, i.e., a cave that contains perennial ice. The data acquired from 2 March 2021 to 13 Dec. 2022 consisted of temperature, humidity, and pressure throughout the cave...
Authors
Timothy N. Titus, Kaj E. Williams, Glen E. Cushing, Amber L. Gullikson
Planetary caves from Mercury to Pluto? Planetary caves from Mercury to Pluto?
On Earth, caves are unique environments at the intersection of geology, climate, and biology. Given that the same terrestrial speleogenetic processes exist throughout the solar system, it would be surprising if caves beyond Earth did not exist. Thousands of potential cave entrances (or subsurface access points) have been identified from Earth’s Moon to Pluto’s moon, Charon. To date, our...
Authors
Timothy N. Titus, Janna Wynne, Michael J. Malaska, Penelope J. Boston
Likely ferromagnetic minerals identified by the Perseverance rover and implications for future paleomagnetic analyses of returned Martian samples Likely ferromagnetic minerals identified by the Perseverance rover and implications for future paleomagnetic analyses of returned Martian samples
Although Mars today does not have a core dynamo, magnetizations in the Martian crust and in meteorites suggest a magnetic field was present prior to 3.7 billion years (Ga) ago. However, the lack of ancient, oriented Martian bedrock samples available on Earth has prevented accurate estimates of the dynamo's intensity, lifetime, and direction. Constraining the nature and lifetime of the...
Authors
M.N. Mansbach, T.V. Kizovski, E. L. Scheller, Tanja Bosak, L. Mandon, B. Horgan, R. C. Wiens, C.D.K. Herd, S. Sharma, J.R. Johnson, Travis S.J. Gabriel, O. Forni, B.P. Weiss
A novel surface energy balance method for thermal inertia studies of terrestrial analogs A novel surface energy balance method for thermal inertia studies of terrestrial analogs
Surface thermal inertia derived from satellite imagery offers a valuable tool for remotely mapping the physical structure and water content of planetary regolith. Efforts to quantify thermal inertia using surface temperatures on Earth, however, have consistently yielded large uncertainties and suffered from a lack of reproducibility. Unlike dry or airless bodies, Earth's abundant water...
Authors
Ari Koeppel, Christopher S. Edwards, Lauren A. Edgar, Scott A Nowicki, Kristen A. Bennett, Amber L. Gullikson, Sylvain Piqueux, Helen A. Eifert, Daphne Chapline, A. Deanne Rogers
An orbital comparison of a late mantling unit on Aeolis Mons with other erosion-resistant strata explored by MSL in Gale crater, Mars An orbital comparison of a late mantling unit on Aeolis Mons with other erosion-resistant strata explored by MSL in Gale crater, Mars
Previous investigations along Curiosity's traverse in Gale crater have explored the relationship between orbital and in situ observations. This work aims to better understand the geologic environment of units only observable from orbit and compare them to the properties of units examined by Curiosity. Here, we map an erosion-resistant dark-toned mantling unit that overlies the modern...
Authors
Amanda Rudolph, B. Horgan, Kristen A. Bennett, Catherine M. Weitz, R.Y. Sheppard, S. G. Banham, A. B. Bryk, E. Kite, A. Roberts, L. Scuderi
A comparison of CO2 seasonal activity in Mars' northern and southern hemispheres A comparison of CO2 seasonal activity in Mars' northern and southern hemispheres
Carbon dioxide is Mars' most active volatile. The seasonal and diurnal processes of when and where it condenses and sublimates are determined by energy balance between the atmosphere and surface ice in Mars' vapor pressure equilibrium climate. Mars' current obliquity ensures that the polar caps are stable locations for seasonal condensation. The eccentricity of Mars' orbit is the major...
Authors
Candice J. Hansen, Shane Byrne, Wendy M. Calvin, Serina Diniega, Colin M. Dundas, Paul O. Hayne, Alfred S. McEwen, Lauren E McKeown, Sylvain Piqueux, Ganna Portyankina, Meg E Schwamb, Timothy N. Titus, Jacob M Widmer
Geologic constraints on the formation and evolution of Saturn’s mid-sized moons Geologic constraints on the formation and evolution of Saturn’s mid-sized moons
Saturn’s mid-sized icy moons have complex relationships with Saturn’s interior, the rings, and with each other, which can be expressed in their shapes, interiors, and geology. Observations of their physical states can, thus, provide important constraints on the ages and formation mechanism(s) of the moons, which in turn informs our understanding of the formation and evolution of Saturn...
Authors
Alyssa Rhoden, Sierra Ferguson, William F. Bottke, Julie C. Castillo-Rogez, Emily Martin, Michael T. Bland, Michelle R. Kirchoff, Marco Zannoni, Nicolas Rambaux, Julien Salmon
The High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) in the MRO extended science phases (2009–2023) The High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) in the MRO extended science phases (2009–2023)
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has been orbiting Mars since 2006 and has acquired >80,000 HiRISE images with sub-meter resolution, contributing to over 2000 peer-reviewed publications, and has provided the data needed to enable safe surface landings in key locations by several rovers or landers. This paper describes the changes to science planning, data processing, and analysis tools...
Authors
Alfred S. McEwen, Shane Byrne, Candice J. Hansen, Ingrid J. Daubar, Sarah Sutton, Colin M. Dundas, Nicole Bardabelias, Nicole Baugh, James W. Bergstrom, Ross A. Beyer, Kristin M Block, Veronica Bray, John C. Bridges, Matthew Chojnacki, Susan J. Conway, W Alan Delamere, T. Ebben, Yisrael Espinosa, Audrie Fennema, John Grant, Virginia C Gulick, Kenneth E. Herkenhoff, Rodney Heyd, Richard Leis, Lujendra Ojha, Singleton Papendick, Christian Schaller, Nicolas Thomas, Livio L. Tornabene, Catherine M. Weitz, Sharon A. Wilson
Polar science results from Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter: Multiwavelength, multiyear insights Polar science results from Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter: Multiwavelength, multiyear insights
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO), with its arrival in 2006 and nearly continuous operation since, has provided data for the study of martian polar processes spanning nine Mars years. Mars' polar deposits have long been thought to preserve records of past climates, potentially readable like terrestrial ice cores. However, unraveling millions of years of history in the ice depends on...
Authors
Margaret E. Landis, P. J. Acharya, N. R. Alsaeed, Chimira Andres, Patricio Becerra, Wendy M. Calvin, E. M. Cangi, S. F. A. Cartwright, M. S. Chaffin, Serina Diniega, Colin M. Dundas, Candice J. Hansen, Paul O. Hayne, Kenneth E. Herkenhoff, David M. Kass, Aditya R. Khuller, Lauren McKeown, Patrich S. Russell, Isaac B. Smith, Sarah S. Sutton, J. M. Widmer, Jennifer L Whitten
New, dated small impacts on the South Polar Layered Deposits (SPLD), Mars, and implications for shallow subsurface properties New, dated small impacts on the South Polar Layered Deposits (SPLD), Mars, and implications for shallow subsurface properties
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) Context Camera (CTX) imaged two newly formed impact craters on the South Polar Layered Deposits (SPLD) of Mars in 2018 and 2020. These two new craters, the first detected on the SPLD, measure ∼17 m and ∼48 m in diameter. Follow-up observations were conducted with the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE), showing seasonal and...
Authors
Margaret E. Landis, Colin M. Dundas, Alfred S. McEwen, Ingrid J. Daubar, Paul O. Hayne, Shane Byrne, Sarah S. Sutton, Vidhya Ganesh Rangarajan, Livio L. Tornabene, Andrew Britton, Kenneth E. Herkenhoff
Novel quantitative methods to enable multispectral identification of high-purity water ice exposures on Mars using High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) images Novel quantitative methods to enable multispectral identification of high-purity water ice exposures on Mars using High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) images
Reliable detection and characterization of water ice on the Martian surface is pivotal to not only understand its present and past climate, but to also provide valuable information on in-situ resource availability and distribution for future human exploration missions. Ice-rich features are currently identified with visible/near-IR (VNIR), thermal IR and radar data. However, their coarse...
Authors
Vidhya Ganesh Rangarajan, Livio L. Tornabene, G. R. Osinski, Colin M. Dundas, Ross A. Beyer, Kenneth E. Herkenhoff, Shane Byrne, Rodney Heyd, Frank P. Seelos, G. Munaretto, Angela Dapremont