Research Project - Wind Ripples on Mars

Researchers at CEPS are funded through the Mars Data Analysis Program of NASA to investigate the mode of origin for some interesting features that are quite common in the highest resolution images of Mars. Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) images have significantly better resolution than any previous orbital images of the martian surface, and they have revealed the common occurrence of linear ridges with spacings of several tens of meters. These features can be interpreted either to be small sand dunes or large wind-generated ripples. Dunes form when sand collects in deposits that are many times larger than the typical jumping distance (called saltation path length) of sand when driven by the wind, and they can affect how the wind flows over the surface. Wind ripples are typically more on the same scale as the jumping distance and they do not alter greatly the local wind flow. Measurements have been made of the features on Mars for comparison with field measurements of large wind ripples on Earth, formed where both sand and coarser particles are mixed together. The work is on-going, and this abstract summarizes some of our results as presented at the 34th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, held in March 2003 in Houston, Texas.
Project Abstract

Dr. Zimbleman's Homepage