GEO 330 Lecture Notes - Lecture 13: Noctis Labyrinthus, Tithonium Chasma, Juventae Chasma
30 Mar 2018
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Document Summary
Series of interconnected canyons that extend over 4000km in an e-w direction. Western noctis labrynthus is at the summit of the tharsis bulge. Eastern portions are low-lying chaos terrain south of chyrse planitia. Depth of canyons are over 6000m along much of the canyon. Most individual canyons range in width up to 150km. Some areas of valles marineris are over 600km wide. Deepest parts of the canyon (western coprates chasma) are 10km below canyon rim. For comparison, grand canyon on earth is 450km long, 30km across at its widest, and. 1700m below the north rim at its deepest. Faulting that formed canyons is part of a radial network of faults around tharsis. It is unknown why such a large rift like valles marineris formed only to the west of tharsis. It is unknown how much of the volume of the canyons is due purely to faulting and how much is due to erosion, mass wasting, etc.
