Grid mapping the northern plains of Mars: Using morphotype and distribution of ice‐related landforms to understand multiple ice‐rich deposits in Utopia Planitia

Kurzfassung

The northern plains of Mars comprise several basins filled by sediments. The region has been proposed to have hosted an ancient ocean and currently contains ice in the ground even at latitudes where the ice is not stable. It is not known, however, what is the origin of the ice, whether it is related to the ancient ocean or recent glaciations. The ages of different surfaces and landforms are also not well known. Improving the geological context of the northern plains will help constrain outstanding questions about evolution of the climate and geology on Mars. An International Space Science Institute team project, composed of several European laboratories with expertise in mapping, has been convened to study targeted areas in the northern plain of Mars. In Utopia Planitia, we mapped and used the distribution of ice-related landforms and radar sounding to understand the distribution of ice over the region. Two young ice-rich deposits with different ice content were identified over the middle and high latitudes of the region. Similar to some regions in the Arctic on Earth, Utopia Planitia appears to be a region of combined deposition of sediment and continuous cold climatic conditions that partially preserved several ice-rich deposits.