Visit the photo gallery of the craters of Mars
Sediment strata deposited in two craters in the Arabia Terra region of Mars indicate thaton the neighboring planet, climate change could occur as a result of fluctuations in the orientation of its axis of rotation.This is the conclusion reached by scientists from the European Space Agency (ESA) after analyzing images obtained by the Mars Express probe.
The images show Danielson and Kalocsa craters in the Arabia Terra region of Mars and were taken last summer. The Danielson crater, about 60 kilometers in diameter, is filled with sedimentary material that has suffered severe erosion over time. Inside you can distinguish some rock formations known asyardangs, as well as adune field, darker in color, that runs through them.
Scientists believe that strongwinds from north-northeast directionthey were responsible for the deposit of the sediments, which could later be cemented by the water of an underground aquifer. When the climate became more arid, the winds would erode the sediments. Furthermore, regular changes in the orientation of the planet’s axis of rotation would cause periodic fluctuations in the red planet’s climate. If so, the different strata would have been deposited at different times in the planet’s history.
In the Kalocsa crater, however, no stratified sediment layers are observed. The researchers argue that, because their base is higher, the deposits would not come into contact with the groundwater that cemented the sediments of Danielson Crater. Another explanation would be that the Kalocsa is younger than its neighbor, and was formed at a time when there was no longer any water in the region.
