A journey into Martian chaos
With today’s cool image, we shall begin with the overview map, and drill our way down until we get a close look at another example of truly alien Martian terrain, with only a hint of similarity to comparable geology on Earth.
The overview map to the right shows us Aram Chaos, an ancient 170-mile-wide impact crater that has gone through such complex geology that it is difficult, maybe impossible, to unravel it based on data obtained from orbit. As I wrote in a detailed December 2020 post describing the confusing geology of this crater,
The floor of Aram Chaos is a place of great puzzlement to planetary geologists. The geology there is incredibly complex, and includes chaos terrain overlain by several sedimentary layers of sulfate minerals. The chaos terrain is most obvious in the southern part of the crater’s floor. The flat areas near the eastern center are those overlaying sedimentary layers.
When we zoom into the white box we can see a good example of this complexity.
Click for full image.
The picture to the right, rotated, cropped, and reduced to post here, was taken by the context camera on Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) on December 12, 2013. It provides us a wide view of the flat regions in the middle of Aram Chaos, with several chaotic blocks of bedrock sticking up like fractured islands.
The second picture to the right, rotated and cropped to post here, was taken on January 29, 2023 by MRO’s high resolution camera. The white box in the context camera picture above indicates the area covered.
The rough white surface material is neither ice, lava, nor frost. As Chris Okubo of the U.S. Geological Survey explained to me in 2020, “These are sedimentary rocks comprised primarily of sulfates. The texture to me suggests these are lithified dunes.”
Lithified merely means that the dunes have hardened into rock. Sulfates are a salt formed from sulfuric acid, and are on Mars often linked to some complex mineralogy. If you stood there the colors would be white and red, quite beautiful. As Okubo further explained, “The sulfates are white to tan in color, but there would also be a lot of red/brown Mars dust on top of it. It would be similar to walking around some of the playas in the desert southwest.”
This white sulfate material, now similar to gypsum and safe to touch, immediately reminds me of the sponge terrain I highlighted in a cool image just last week. That terrain however was dark, while this is light.
Are they related? Darned if I know. In the case of Aram Chaos, the data suggests these dunes might have once covered the entire floor of the crater. First they were sand blown into dunes by the wind. Then they hardened into rock, and the wind, other chemical processes, and above all time has been slowly eroding them down to expose the bedrock of chaos terrain below.
Readers!
Every February I run a fund-raising drive during my birthday month. This year I celebrate my 72nd birthday, and hope and plan to continue writing and posting on Behind the Black for as long as I am able.
I hope my readers will support this effort. As I did in my November fund-raising drive, I am offering autographed copies of my books for large donations. Donate $250 and you can have a choice of the hardback of either Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8 or Conscious Choice: The origins of slavery in America and why it matters today and for our future in outer space. Donate $200 and you can get an autographed paperback copy of either.
Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black. My analysis of space, politics, and culture, taken from the perspective of an historian, is almost always on the money and ahead of the game. For example, in 2020 I correctly predicted that the COVID panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Every one of those 2020 conclusions has turned out right.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:
4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.
With today’s cool image, we shall begin with the overview map, and drill our way down until we get a close look at another example of truly alien Martian terrain, with only a hint of similarity to comparable geology on Earth.
The overview map to the right shows us Aram Chaos, an ancient 170-mile-wide impact crater that has gone through such complex geology that it is difficult, maybe impossible, to unravel it based on data obtained from orbit. As I wrote in a detailed December 2020 post describing the confusing geology of this crater,
The floor of Aram Chaos is a place of great puzzlement to planetary geologists. The geology there is incredibly complex, and includes chaos terrain overlain by several sedimentary layers of sulfate minerals. The chaos terrain is most obvious in the southern part of the crater’s floor. The flat areas near the eastern center are those overlaying sedimentary layers.
When we zoom into the white box we can see a good example of this complexity.
Click for full image.
The picture to the right, rotated, cropped, and reduced to post here, was taken by the context camera on Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) on December 12, 2013. It provides us a wide view of the flat regions in the middle of Aram Chaos, with several chaotic blocks of bedrock sticking up like fractured islands.
The second picture to the right, rotated and cropped to post here, was taken on January 29, 2023 by MRO’s high resolution camera. The white box in the context camera picture above indicates the area covered.
The rough white surface material is neither ice, lava, nor frost. As Chris Okubo of the U.S. Geological Survey explained to me in 2020, “These are sedimentary rocks comprised primarily of sulfates. The texture to me suggests these are lithified dunes.”
Lithified merely means that the dunes have hardened into rock. Sulfates are a salt formed from sulfuric acid, and are on Mars often linked to some complex mineralogy. If you stood there the colors would be white and red, quite beautiful. As Okubo further explained, “The sulfates are white to tan in color, but there would also be a lot of red/brown Mars dust on top of it. It would be similar to walking around some of the playas in the desert southwest.”
This white sulfate material, now similar to gypsum and safe to touch, immediately reminds me of the sponge terrain I highlighted in a cool image just last week. That terrain however was dark, while this is light.
Are they related? Darned if I know. In the case of Aram Chaos, the data suggests these dunes might have once covered the entire floor of the crater. First they were sand blown into dunes by the wind. Then they hardened into rock, and the wind, other chemical processes, and above all time has been slowly eroding them down to expose the bedrock of chaos terrain below.
Readers!
Every February I run a fund-raising drive during my birthday month. This year I celebrate my 72nd birthday, and hope and plan to continue writing and posting on Behind the Black for as long as I am able.
I hope my readers will support this effort. As I did in my November fund-raising drive, I am offering autographed copies of my books for large donations. Donate $250 and you can have a choice of the hardback of either Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8 or Conscious Choice: The origins of slavery in America and why it matters today and for our future in outer space. Donate $200 and you can get an autographed paperback copy of either.
Please consider supporting my work here at Behind the Black. My analysis of space, politics, and culture, taken from the perspective of an historian, is almost always on the money and ahead of the game. For example, in 2020 I correctly predicted that the COVID panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Every one of those 2020 conclusions has turned out right.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
1. Zelle: This is the only internet method that charges no fees. All you have to do is use the Zelle link at your internet bank and give my name and email address (zimmerman at nasw dot org). What you donate is what I get.
2. Patreon: Go to my website there and pick one of five monthly subscription amounts, or by making a one-time donation.
3. A Paypal Donation or subscription:
4. Donate by check, payable to Robert Zimmerman and mailed to
Behind The Black
c/o Robert Zimmerman
P.O.Box 1262
Cortaro, AZ 85652
You can also support me by buying one of my books, as noted in the boxes interspersed throughout the webpage or shown in the menu above.
Readers: the rules for commenting!
No registration is required. I welcome all opinions, even those that strongly criticize my commentary.
However, name-calling and obscenities will not be tolerated. First time offenders who are new to the site will be warned. Second time offenders or first time offenders who have been here awhile will be suspended for a week. After that, I will ban you. Period.
Note also that first time commenters as well as any comment with more than one link will be placed in moderation for my approval. Be patient, I will get to it.