The Mangala Valles are a complex system of criss-crossing channels on Mars, located in the Tharsis region and in the Memnonia quadrangle. They originated in the Hesperian and Amazonian epochs. They are thought to be an outflow channel system, carved by catastrophic floods, and the release of vast quantities of water across the Martian surface. This flooding was probably initiated by tectonic stretching and the formation of a graben, Mangala Fossa, at the channels' head, perhaps breaching a pressurized aquifer trapped beneath a thick "cryosphere" (layer of frozen ground) beneath the surface.Carr, M. 1979. Formation of martian flood features by release of water from confined aquifers. Journal of Geophysical Research 84: 2995-3007.Hanna, J. and R. Phillips. 2005. Tectonic pressurization of aquifers in the formation of Mangala and Athabasca Valles on Mars. LPSC XXXVI. Abstract 2261. The Mangala Valles contain several basins; after they filled, the overflow went through a series of spillways.Cabrol, N. and E. Grin (eds.). 2010. Lakes on Mars. Elsevier. NY.Emrick, C. and R. De Hon. 1999. Flood discharge through Labou Vallis, Mars. Lunar Planet. Sci. Conf. XXX: Abstract #1893. One source of waters for the system was the Memonia Fossae, but water also probably came from a large basin centered at 40 degrees S.Zimbelman, J. et al. 1992. Volatile history of Mangala Valles, Mars. Journal of Geophysical Research 97: 18309-18317De Hon, R. 1994. Lacustrine sedimentation in lower Mangals Valles. Mars Lunar Planet. Sci. Conf. XXVII: 295-296
A recent study that used photogeologic analysis, geomorphic surface mapping, cratering statistics, and relative stratigraphy, demonstrated that the Mangala Valles were flooded by water at least twice and covered with lava at least three times during the Late Amazonian. The presence of scoured bedrock at the base of the mapped stratigraphy, together with evidence from crater retention ages, suggests that fluvial activity came before lava flows. These alternating periods of aqueous flooding and volcanism are similar to that of other outflow systems on Mars, such as Ravi Vallis and the Kasei Valles.
There are wind-sculpted ridges, or yardangs, covering many of the surfaces in the Mangala Valles region.
"Mangala" is the name for Mars in Jyotish (or Hindu) astrology.
Gallery
In fiction The Mangala Valles are referred to in Michael Crichton's book Sphere. In Stephen Baxter's novel Voyage, they are the location of the first crewed Mars landing. They are mentioned in Terry Pratchett's and Stephen Baxter's novel The Long Mars. They are also the location of the first crewed Mars base in
See also
Graben Memnonia quadrangle Outburst flood Outflow channels
References
External links Lunar and Planetary Institute