The consistently shallow depths of the depressions scattered across Mercury's surface suggest their morphology is not determined by the thickness of a volatile-rich outer layer.
Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets
Posted inResearch Spotlights
New Insight into Silica Explains Planetary Smashup
A better equation of state for silica will help planetary scientists accurately constrain the giant impacts that have shaped our solar system.
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Mars’s Climate May Have Been Wet Much Later Than Thought
Water-carved valleys may be relatively young, challenging assumptions about the history of the Red Planet's climate.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Reconstructing Catastrophic Floods on Earth and Mars
A new theoretical model suggests that ancient floods that carved canyons on Earth and Mars may have been much smaller but lasted longer than previously thought.
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A Cluster of Water Seeps on Mars?
The discovery of dense concentrations of recurring flowlike features in two Valles Marineris chasms could aid in the search for life and influence future exploration of the Red Planet.
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Carbon Dioxide Frost May Keep Martian Soil Dusty
Temperature readings acquired from orbit show that Mars's surface gets cold enough at night to allow layers of solid carbon dioxide frost up to several hundred micrometers thick to build up near the equator.
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Curiosity Sends Curious Water Data from Mars
The rover's neutron spectroscopy instrument hints at an unexpected trend: The upper soil levels in the layers of Gale Crater's Kimberley formation seem to hold more water-associated hydrogen.
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Martian Carbonates Spotted by the Orbiter
The minerals identified by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter provide more evidence that the planet may have once been habitable.
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Satellites Reveal the History of the Moon's "Frigid Sea"
The history of aluminum-rich basalts in Mare Frigoris may help scientists better understand the evolution of the lunar mantle.
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Curiosity Rover Finds Organic Molecules on Martian Surface
Scientists assess the present and past habitability of Mars from organic compounds detected at Gale Crater.