Aromatum Chaos
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Aromatum Chaos is a deep depression, in what is considered chaotic terrain. It is the source of the
outflow channel Outflow channels are extremely long, wide swathes of scoured ground on Mars.Carr, M.H. (2006), ''The Surface of Mars''. Cambridge Planetary Science Series, Cambridge University Press. They extend many hundreds of kilometers in length and are typ ...
Ravi Vallis Ravi Vallis is an ancient outflow channel, the source of which originates from the Aromatum Chaos depression, and is situated at the eastern end of Xanthe Terra, in the Margaritifer Sinus quadrangle (MC-19) region of Mars, located at . The Ravi V ...
, and is situated at the eastern end of Xanthe Terra, in the
Margaritifer Sinus quadrangle The Margaritifer Sinus quadrangle is one of a series of list of quadrangles on Mars, 30 quadrangle maps of Mars used by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Astrogeology Research Program. The Margaritifer Sinus quadrangle is also referred ...
(MC-19) region of
Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun. It is also known as the "Red Planet", because of its orange-red appearance. Mars is a desert-like rocky planet with a tenuous carbon dioxide () atmosphere. At the average surface level the atmosph ...
, located at . Aromatum Chaos is in length, and has an average width of about . The maximum depth of the floor of Aromatum Chaos has been calculated to be about below the rim level. The mean depth of the western two-thirds of the Aromatum Chaos depression is about 1.64 km, and the remaining eastern one third of the area, is estimated to be about km in depth below the rim (using MOLA topography data). Thus, the average depth is . The Aromatum Chaos depression and the neighboring
Ravi Vallis Ravi Vallis is an ancient outflow channel, the source of which originates from the Aromatum Chaos depression, and is situated at the eastern end of Xanthe Terra, in the Margaritifer Sinus quadrangle (MC-19) region of Mars, located at . The Ravi V ...
outflow channel are thought to have been caused by volcano-ice interactions, involving a combination of
dikes Dyke or dike may refer to: General uses * Dyke (slang), a slang word meaning "lesbian" * Dike (geology), formations of magma or sediment that cut through and across the layering of adjacent rocks * Dike (mythology), ''Dikē'', the Greek goddess ...
and sills, which disrupted the
cryosphere The cryosphere is an umbrella term for those portions of Earth's surface where water is in solid form. This includes sea ice, ice on lakes or rivers, snow, glaciers, ice caps, ice sheets, and frozen ground (which includes permafrost). Thus, there ...
underneath the surface. This is thought to have pierced an underground
aquifer An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing material, consisting of permeability (Earth sciences), permeable or fractured rock, or of unconsolidated materials (gravel, sand, or silt). Aquifers vary greatly in their characteristics. The s ...
, resulting in the release of large amounts of water. This in turn caused crustal collapse, which created the Aromatum Chaos depression, and a catastrophic flood event, which formed the Ravi Vallis outflow channel. The flood has been estimated to have lasted between 2 and 10 weeks. For estimates of water flow, such as the water speed, the volume discharge rate, and the minimum total water volume discharged, see the
Ravi Vallis Ravi Vallis is an ancient outflow channel, the source of which originates from the Aromatum Chaos depression, and is situated at the eastern end of Xanthe Terra, in the Margaritifer Sinus quadrangle (MC-19) region of Mars, located at . The Ravi V ...
page. Volcano-Ice interactions which took place at Aromatum Chaos, and the resulting catastrophic flood events which formed the neighboring Ravi Vallis outflow channel, are also known to have taken place in other parts of Mars, e.g.;
Kasei Valles The Kasei Valles are a giant system of canyons in Mare Acidalium and Lunae Palus quadrangles on Mars, centered at 24.6° north latitude and 65.0° west longitude. They are long and were named for the word for "Mars" in Japanese. This is one ...
,Keskea, A., C. Hamilton, A. McEwen, I. Daubar. Episodes of fluvial and volcanic activity in Mangala Valles, Mars. Icarus:245, 333-347. and
Mangala Valles The Mangala Valles are a complex system of criss-crossing channels on Mars, located in the Tharsis region and in the Memnonia quadrangle. They originated in the Hesperian and Amazonian epochs. They are thought to be an outflow channel system, ...
.


See also

*
Chaos terrain In astrogeology, chaos terrain, or chaotic terrain, is a planetary surface area where features such as ridges, cracks, and plains appear jumbled and enmeshed with one another. Chaos terrain is a notable feature of the planets Mars and Mercury, ...
* List of areas of chaos terrain on Mars *
Martian chaos terrain The planet Mars has distinctive areas of chaos terrain, a topography unlike any on Earth. Chaos terrain generally consists of irregular groups of large blocks, some reaching tens of kilometers across and a hundred or more meters high. The tilted a ...
*
Outburst flood In geomorphology, an outburst flood—a type of megaflood—is a high-magnitude, low-frequency catastrophic flood involving the sudden release of a large quantity of water. During the last deglaciation, numerous glacial lake outburst floods were ...
*
Outflow channels Outflow channels are extremely long, wide swathes of scoured ground on Mars.Carr, M.H. (2006), ''The Surface of Mars''. Cambridge Planetary Science Series, Cambridge University Press. They extend many hundreds of kilometers in length and are typi ...


References

{{Portal bar, Solar System Margaritifer Sinus quadrangle Valleys and canyons on Mars Chaotic terrains on Mars