[1] Hematite-bearing deposits in the Terra Meridiani region of Mars constitute the top stratum of a partially eroded layered complex that covers dissected Noachian-aged cratered terrain. The hematite unit consists of dark plains and dunes covering a bright substrate. This substrate is fully exposed beyond the borders of the hematite-bearing deposit and consists of polygonal ground separated by ridges or valleys, together with layered deposits that have been eroded into a variety of landforms. The complex is partially covered by a regional-scale aeolian mantle that thickens toward the north. The hematite-bearing stratum exhibits low albedoes, pulse widths, and intermediate thermal inertias, whereas the underlying unit exhibits high values of these parameters. Both units have spectral emissivity signatures similar to those for the low albedo cratered terrain to the south, with the addition of hematite for the top stratum. The complex is interpreted to consist of extensive plains-forming lava flows and tephra deposits emplaced during an extensional regime and at least partially buried by an aeolian mantle. Aeolian stripping of the mantle exposed much of the complex and differentially eroded the deposits to produce the landforms existent today. Exploration of the hematite-bearing deposits by the 2003 Mars Exploration Rover, ''Opportunity,'' will allow testing of the hypotheses presented since this stratum has been locally reworked into dunes that only partially cover the underlying brighter portion of the complex. In particular, the rover-based measurements will allow us to test the extent to which the unusual remote-sensing properties of the units indicate aqueous alteration.

Abstract-Impact cratering is a ubiquitous geological process on the terrestrial planets. Meteorite impact craters are the most visible product of impact events, but there is a growing recognition that large aerial bursts or airbursts should occur relatively frequently throughout geological time. In this contribution, we report on an unusual impact glass-the Dakhleh Glass (DG)-which is distributed over an area of ~400 km 2 of the Dakhleh Oasis, Egypt. This region preserves a rich history of habitation stretching back to over 400,000 years before the emergence of Homo sapiens. We report on observations made during recent fieldwork and subsequent analytical analyses that strengthen previous suggestions that the DG formed during an impact event. The wide distribution and large size of DG specimens (up to ~50 cm across), the chemistry (e.g., CaO and Al 2 O 3 contents up to ~25 and 18 wt%, respectively), the presence of lechatelierite and burnt sediments, and the inclusion of clasts and spherules in the DG is inconsistent with known terrestrial processes of glass formation. The age and other textural characteristics rule out a human origin. Instead, we draw upon recent numerical modeling of airbursts to suggest that the properties of DG, coupled with the absence of a confirmed crater, can best be explained by melting of surficial sediments as a result of a large airburst event. We suggest that glass produced by such events should, therefore, be more common in the rock record than impact craters, assuming that the glass formed in a suitable preserving environment.

Mid-Pleistocene lacustrine sediments exposed as erosional remnants in Dakhleh Oasis in the Western Desert of Egypt provide evidence for a more humid climate than that which persists today. The sediments range in facies from palustrine to fully lacustrine and generally refl ect an increase in water depth upward through the strata. Ironstone spring deposits associated with the lacustrine sediments and modern artesian discharge in the oasis indicate that Nubian aquifer water was probably an important component of the water balance, but the high carbonate content of the lake sediments requires the input of surface drainage derived from the nearby limestone-capped Libyan Plateau. Although defi nitive shorelines have not been observed, a maximum lake size of 1735 km 2 is derived from extrapolation of the elevations of the deposits onto the modern defl ated topography. Theoretical water balance modeling suggests that in addition to the discharge derived from the Nubian aquifer, ~410-860 mm/yr of rainfall would be required over the Dakhleh Oasis drainage basin in order to maintain the lake at hydrologic steady state. The persistence of climatic and hydrologic conditions amenable to maintaining a shallow freshwater lake would have allowed the region to be inhabited by a savanna fauna, as well as early human groups.

Authigenic calcite silts at Wadi Midauwara in Kharga Oasis, Egypt, indicate the prolonged presence of surface water during the Marine Isotope Stage 5e pluvial phase recognized across North Africa. Exposed over an area of ∼ 4.25 km2, these silts record the ponding of water derived from springs along the Libyan Plateau escarpment and from surface drainage. The δ18O values of these lacustrine carbonates (− 11.3‰ to − 8.0‰ PDB), are too high to reflect equilibrium precipitation with Nubian aquifer water or water of an exclusively Atlantic origin. Mg/Ca and Sr/Ca of the silts have a modest negative covariance with silt δ18O values, suggesting that the water may have experienced the shortest residence time in local aquifers when the water δ18O values were highest. Furthermore, intra-shell δ18O, Sr/Ca, and Ba/Ca analyses of the freshwater gastropodMelanoides tuberculataare consistent with a perennially fresh water source, suggesting that strong evaporative effects expected in a monsoonal climate did not occur, or that dry season spring flow was of sufficient magnitude to mute the effects of evaporation. The input of a second, isotopically heavier water source to aquifers, possibly Indian Ocean monsoonal rain, could explain the observed trends in δ18O and minor element ratios.

In the northeastern Sahara, electron spin resonance (ESR) dating of when animals lived documents their habitability in Dakhleh Oasis, Egypt. A Middle Pleistocene paleolake(s) covered >1700 km 2. At eastern Locality Dak348, 10m thick, remnant lacustrine marls yielded Pleistocene fauna, rare artefacts, and plant casts. No obvious unconformity exists within these deposits. From upper horizons, a hartebeest tooth ESR dated at 195 ± 11 ka, correlates with Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 7, while molluscs from a stratigraphically higher horizon averaged 89 ± 10 ka, correlating with MIS 5a/b. At western Locality Dak006, upslope deflation has left a temporally mixed surficial lag. Numerous lagged tooth fragments, independently dated by ESR, correlate with MIS 5 through 17. Fragments from a slope sand unit correlate with MIS stages 3 through 6. One bovid tooth associated with Younger Middle Stone Age artefacts in the base of the sand dated at 84 ± 7 ka (MIS 5a/b). Molluscs from Romano-Byzantine backdirt at a breached artesian vent dated to 8-15 ± 1 ka, suggesting that ponds formed during MIS 1 and 2. Even without well defined sedimentary contexts, ESR frequency data indicate that the oasis was habitable for herbivores during at least twelve stages in the Mid-Late Quaternary, and, therefore, likely also for humans.