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Introduction and Hypothesis:
Science Question: What effect does elevation have on Martian lava flows?
Our class was interested in conducting Earth Science research. After a Google
search, we came upon the ASU Mars project. From the results of our class survey, we
concluded that our class was very interested in studying volcanoes on Mars. After
completing background research, the class decided to focus on how elevation affects lava
flows.
By studying lava flows on Mars the geology of Mars can be revealed. This
research provides an accurate comparison between Earth’s features and Mar’s features.
Others have determined that Mar’s atmosphere is 1/100 of the Earth’s. This led us to
believe that lava flows on Mars would cool at a different rate than those on Earth. At this
point in the research process we had not observed lava flows on Mars.
Our Hypothesis: If a volcano has a high elevation, then the lava flows will be short.
Explanation: Because the temperature is lower at higher elevations, we assume that lava
will cool more quickly.
Background:
Olympus Mons, one of the youngest shield volcanoes, is the largest volcano in the
Mars solar system. The lava is sticky and tears when it moves. Ulysses Patera, buried by
Pavonis Mon’s lava, is located at the middle of Tharsis volcanism. This shield volcano’s
striking features are its old age and the two large impact craters located on it. Ceraunius
Tholus is a basaltic shield volcano located in the Tharsis quadrangle. The slopes are steep
with many radial erosion channels and pitted valleys. Arsia Mons is the southernmost
shield volcano on the Tharsis bulge.
All four volcanoes we examined are shield volcanoes. Because they are shield
volcanoes, this means that they are made up of almost entirely fluid lava flows. They
erupt high fluid lava.
MOLA Map of Mars Volcanoes
Definitions:
Shield volcanoes- Type of volcano usually built almost of fluid lava flows
Altitude- The height of an object above sea level
Slope- Surface of which one end or side is higher than the other
Lava Flows- Streams of molten rock that pour or ooze from an erupting vent
Atmosphere- A layer of gases that may surround a material body of
sufficient mass
Caldera- A cauldron-like volcanic feature usually formed by the collapse of
land following a volcanic eruption
Olympus Mons- Shield volcano, 14 miles high, tallest mountain in the solar
system, 370 miles wide, the summit has 6 nested calderas, 2 miles deep
Image of Lava Flows on Mars
Lava Flow Formation on Earth
Streams of molten rocks ooze from an erupting vent and the lava cools. The lava
flow speed depends on many factors. For example, the type of lava that erupts and the
viscosity of the lava affect the lava flow pace. When traveling down a steep slope,
lava flows are capable of moving 10 kilometers an hour. Viscous andesite flows move
very slowly, and usually do not extend more than 8 kilometers away from their vents.
Because of the lack of information on the formation of lava flows on Mars,
researchers assume the lava flow formations on Mars are very similar to the lava flow
formations on Earth.
Supporting Hypothesis: Carr et al., discussed in their research that the length
of flows varies with altitude of the vent. They stated that the higher the vent,
the shorter the flow.
Ceraunius Tholus
Arsia Mons
Geographic Locations:
elevation: 22 km
slope: 2-5 degrees
width: 550 km
latitude: 18.4 north
longitude: 226 east
elevation: 5.5 km
slope: 8 degrees
width: 130 km
latitude: 24.25 north
longitude:262 west
elevation: 2-3 km
slope: 2-7 degrees
width: 2.24 km
latitude: 2.7 north
longitude:121 west
elevation: 18.1 km
slope: 7 degrees
width: 110 km
latitude: 10 south
longitude:239 east
Ulysses Patera
Olympus Mons
Methods
JMARS was employed to measure lengths of lava flows on the following
volcanoes: Pavonis Mons, Olypmus Mons, Ulysses Patera, and Arsia Mons
1) Login to J Mars.
2) Enter longitude and latitude on the volcano.
3) Click on:
Add new layer
Stamps
Themis
4) Type in longitude and latitude then click Okay.
5) Once blue boxes appear, zoom into the vent of the volcano.
6) Double click on blue box until it turns yellow.
7) Right click and select Render Selected THEMIS Stamps.
8) Click Render Selected BWS.
9) After the box loads, zoom in and search for visible lava flows.
10) On the left, move Custom Shape box up to control this box.
11) Right click and select Add Points/Lines/Polygons
12) Double click on the beginning of the lava flow, drag the curser over and click the
path of the lava flow until the end.
13) Double click on Custom Shape.
14) Click on Feature and Edit Columns.
15) Name: length Type: Perimeter
16) Select Add Column and Okay.
17) Record length in notebook.
Example of Measurements
Data Tables
0
5
10
15
20
25
15500 16000 16500 17000 17500 18000 18500
Lav
a F
low
Len
gth
Elevation
Arsia Mons
Series1
Linear (Series1)
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
0 2,000 4,000 6,000 8,000
Lava Flow Length
Elevation
Pavonis Mons
Series1
Linear (Series1)
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
12,000 12,200 12,400 12,600 12,800
Lava Flow Length
Elevation
Ulysses Pattera
Series1
Linear (Series1)
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
18,500 19,000 19,500 20,000
Lava Flow Length
Elevation
Olympus Mons
Series1
Linear (Series1)
0
5
10
15
20
25
0 5000 10000 15000 20000 25000
Lava Flow Length
Elevation
Combined Lava Flow Data
Series1
Linear (Series1)
Discussion
In doing preliminary research, the following facts on Mars were discovered:
Because of the thin Martian atmosphere, little heat is retained. Heat present on
Mars comes from solar radiation absorbed by the ground. The temperature on Mars
ranges from -80˚F to 70˚F. The atmosphere on Mars is one hundred times thinner than
Earth’s. Weather, clouds, and winds exist on Mars. Wind currents lift dust into the air,
absorbing sunlight, and allows for heating of the Martian surface. This causes dust
storms.
Our targeted image showed wind streaks as well as evidence of lava flows. This
image along with other data collected was invaluable in our research.
Errors and Bias
Human errors are often present in group research. Misinterpretations may also
happen during research projects. Our research was limited due to not being able to find
THEMIS images covering the entire volcano. Because we began this project with very
little knowledge, we were not bias. The amount of data that we collected creates a greater
potential for error.
Conclusions
Science Question: What effect does elevation have on Martian lava flows?
Data showed that volcanic elevation does have an effect on lava flows. The
average flow length was longer for lowest elevation volcano and shorter for the highest
elevation volcano. Atmospheric temperature has an effect on the cooling rate of lava
flows. Adiabatic temperature changes can be used to explain the data results. In this
process, as air is heated by the surface it expands. As the air expands it becomes lighter
and rises. As it rises, it expands even more. It is able to continue to expand because of
the low pressure in higher elevations. Lower pressure means there is fewer molecules
present. Fewer molecules allows for more expansion room. Energy is needed for
molecular expansion. The expansion room leads to less vibration of the molecules.
Because of this the temperature of the molecules drops. The air cools and moves toward
the Martian surface. This movement increases atmospheric pressure at lower elevation.
This in turn causes greater movement of molecules and an increased temperature.
Therefore, adiabatic warming and cooling keeps the temperature at the surface of Mars
higher than that at higher elevations. This allows for lava flows to be longer at low
elevations compared to lava flows at higher elevations.
Hypothesis: Our hypothesis was supported by Carr et al.’s research. Their research
supports the theory that the higher the altitude of a vent the shorter the lava flow will be.
Future Work
There is much future work to be done in understanding lava flows on Mars. There are
many still unknowns about Mars and what factors affect the lava flows. To expand this
research project more lava flow data should be collected on volcanoes of varying
altitudes. Other variables that might affect lava flows are the location of the volcano on
the Martian surface and the slope of the volcano.
Acknowledgements
A special thanks to Miss Jessica Swann for her invaluable guidance throughout this
project. She has the patience of Job and a heart for students and their education. This
project would not have been possible without her guidance.
Also, a special thanks to ASU for providing this program to encourage Mars exploration.
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