Development of the highland/lowland dichotomy boundary on Mars

CEPS Staff: Dr. Tom Watters Dr. Ross Irwin

The crustal dichotomy boundary on Mars is a narrow region separating the cratered highlands, located mostly in the southern hemisphere of Mars, from the northern hemisphere's lowland plains. The cratered highlands stand two to five kilometers higher than the lowland plains, so the boundary is a relatively steep slope. The processes that created and modified the dichotomy boundary remain among the major unanswered issues in Mars science. Our research includes studies of tectonics (folding and faulting) and erosion along the boundary, with a goal of better understanding how the dichotomy boundary formed and evolved with time. The highland crust along the boundary appears to have been flexed downward early in Martian history, perhaps due to emplacing a heavy load of volcanic materials in the lowlands. After the crustal boundary formed, sediment was trapped at the base of the slope, and later erosion of this sedimentary deposit formed the fretted terrain that is unique to Mars.

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