The surface geology and geomorphology of Phobos

Basilevsky, A. T.; Lorenz, C. A.; Shingareva, T. V.; Head, J. W.; Ramsley, K. R.; Zubarev, A. E.

doi:10.1016/j.pss.2014.04.013

Cited by 105 publications

(94 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…Results indicate ejecta blanket thicknesses between 35 and 54 m, assuming uniform distribution over the surface of Phobos. These numbers are consistent with observed crater morphologies, which indicate regolith thicknesses of 5–100 m [ Basilevsky et al , ]. If the grooves are interpreted as drainage pits for regolith along planes of fracture, this amount is not sufficient to supply the 100–400 m of unconsolidated material necessary to produce such formations [ Thomas et al , ; Horstman and Melosh , ; Murray and Heggie , ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Note that while these damage levels are significantly lower than the near‐global damage found in 2‐D axisymmetric calculations [ Asphaug and Melosh , ], they appear comparable to the localized damage found in a subsequent 3‐D calculation, which used an ellipsoidal Phobos target [ Asphaug et al , ]. While Phobos currently appears to be blanketed by a layer of unconsolidated material [ Basilevsky et al , ], its state at the time of the Stickney impact is uncertain. The influence of regolith on the results was tested using a 100 m thick layer of strengthless basalt at the surface of Phobos.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Excavating Stickney crater at Phobos

Syal

Rovny

Owen

et al. 2016

Geophysical Research Letters

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Stickney crater, at 9 km across, dominates the morphology of ~22 km Phobos, the larger of the two moons of Mars. The Stickney impact event had global repercussions for Phobos, including extensive resurfacing and fracturing of the moon. Understanding the initial conditions and dynamical consequences of the collision is necessary to test competing hypotheses for the origin of peculiar grooved terrain that striates much of the surface. Previous modeling of the impact event was unable to replicate Stickney without globally fragmenting the satellite. Here we describe high‐resolution numerical simulations that successfully generate Stickney crater while maintaining the large‐scale structure of Phobos. Target porosity, which is estimated to be significant, aids in keeping the moon intact. Damage follows patterns centered on Stickney that are inconsistent with the observed alignment of grooved terrain on Phobos. Low‐velocity boulders are ejected at shallow angles in sufficient numbers to support a rolling‐boulder origin for grooved terrain.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Excavating Stickney crater at Phobos

Syal

Rovny

Owen

et al. 2016

Geophysical Research Letters

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“…On Mercury, much of the spectral reflectance variations are controlled by minor differences in graphite and is disconnected from variations in major element chemistry . The blue unit is associated with Stickney ejecta, but not all ejecta are blue, suggesting that the blue unit may be exposed material from a subsurface reservoir of chemically distinct material (Basilevsky et al, 2014). The red unit has absorption near 0.65 μm, attributed to Fe-phyllosilicates or a mixture of grain sizes of metallic Fe, which is lacking from the blue unit.…”

Section: Megane Science Goal 2: Study Surface Processes On Airless Bomentioning

confidence: 99%

Measuring the Elemental Composition of Phobos: The Mars‐moon Exploration with GAmma rays and NEutrons (MEGANE) Investigation for the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) Mission

Lawrence

Peplowski

Beck

et al. 2019

Earth and Space Science

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The Mars-moon Exploration with GAmma rays and NEutrons (MEGANE) investigation will use gamma-ray and neutron spectroscopy to measure the elemental composition of Mars' moon Phobos. MEGANE is part of the Japanese Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission that will make comprehensive remote sensing measurements of both of Mars' moons Phobos and Deimos. MMX will also return to Earth regolith samples of Phobos. The science goals of the MEGANE investigation mirror those of the MMX mission. MEGANE will use elemental composition measurements to determine if Phobos is a captured asteroid or the end result of a giant impact event on Mars, study Phobos surface processes, provide reconnaissance to support the sample site selection, and supply compositional context for the returned samples. To accomplish its measurements, MEGANE will use a high-purity Ge gamma-ray spectrometer (GRS), and a neutron spectrometer (NS) that consists of two 3 He gas proportional neutron sensors. The GRS derives heritage from similar instruments from NASA's MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging mission and the Psyche mission that is currently in development; the NS is based on similar instruments used for NASA's Lunar Prospector and Psyche missions.

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“…Similarly, both craters, D'Arrest and the unnamed crater next to it, show mass wasting from their irregular southern rims (Figure 1e). We adopt the distribution map of mass wasting features described by Basilevsky et al [2014] (…”

Section: Mass Wasting Features On Phobosmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mass wasting on Phobos triggered by an evolving tidal environment

Shi

Oberst

Willner

2016

Geophysical Research Letters

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The Martian moon Phobos is experiencing orbital decay, increasing tidal forces, and possible disruption in the near future. We suggest that this changing dynamic tidal environment has contributed to resurfacing of the odd‐shaped small moon. We investigated mass wasting features in craters using high‐resolution images acquired by the Mars Express on board High‐Resolution Stereo Camera. We model the evolving dynamical environment of Phobos by reconstructing dynamic slopes on its surface with Phobos at different distances to Mars. We note that the increase in slope by tidal effect correlates with most of the observed landslides, which is particularly obvious for craters near the sub‐Mars and anti‐Mars points. We suggest that the effect has triggered mass displacements that are responsible for observed asymmetries of some craters. The most recent landslides are likely to be geologically young and occurred within the past few hundred million years.

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The surface geology and geomorphology of Phobos

Cited by 105 publications

References 56 publications

Excavating Stickney crater at Phobos

Excavating Stickney crater at Phobos

Measuring the Elemental Composition of Phobos: The Mars‐moon Exploration with GAmma rays and NEutrons (MEGANE) Investigation for the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) Mission

Mass wasting on Phobos triggered by an evolving tidal environment

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