Boldly Going Where No Geographer Has Gone Before: The Martian Classroom

1. The Los Angeles Geographical Society (7 September 2007) Dr. Christine M. Rodrigue California State University, Long Beach Former President of the LAGS (1988) Boldly Going Where NoGeographer Has Gone Before:The Martian Classroom

2. Mars Imagined • How have you imagined Mars?

3. Mars Imagined • How has science imagined Mars? • Schiaparelli’s canali (1877-1886)

4. Mars Imagined • How has science imagined Mars? • Lowell’s canals

5. Mars Imagined • How has science imagined Mars? • Viking’s dead, dry Mars (1976-1982)

6. Mars Imagined • How has science imagined Mars? • 1990s/2000s: could Mars once have been warm and soggy?

7. Mars: Planet of Extremes • The tallest volcano in the solar system • Olympus Mons: 24 km tall, 500 km wide, a 6 km cliff at its base: Everest is not quite 9 km tall! (Viking)

8. Mars: Planet of Extremes • The longest and deepest canyon in the solar system • Valles Marineris: 4,000 km long, 2-7 km deep (Viking)

9. Mars: Planet of Extremes • The mother of all impact craters • Hellas Planitia: 6 km deep, 2,500 km in diameter (MGS MOLA)

10. Mars: Planet of Extremes • Some spectacularly old impact-battered surfaces • Some of these may be older than 3.5 billion years old • Mariner 6 1969 flyby (Sinus Sabaeus & Deucalionis Regio)

11. Mars: Planet of Extremes • Unpleasant atmosphere • Density varies: less than one half of one percent of Earth’s

12. Mars: Planet of Extremes • Unpleasant atmosphere • Windy, dusty place

13. Mars: Planet of Extremes • Unpleasant atmosphere • Really COLD place (MGS TES)

14. Mars Geographers • A few of the many geographers active in the study of Mars • Mary C. Bourke,Oxford Geography Department • M. Buchroithner,Inst für Kartographie, Dresden • Ed Cloutis,Geography, University of Winnipeg • Bethany L. Ehlmann,Oxford Geography M.Sc. 2007, going on for Ph.D. in Geology at Brown University • Julie Laity,Geography, CSUN • K. Maria D. Lane,Geography, UT Austin • Ruth Mugford,Ph.D. student, Cambridge Geography • Richard J. Pike,M.A. Geography, Ph.D. Geology, U.S.G.S. • John Pitlick,University of Colorado, Boulder • Wayne H. Pollard,McGill University • Andrew J. Russell,Physical Geography, Keele University, UK • Richard Soare, Concordia University

15. Mars: Course Outlinehttp://www.csulb.edu/~rodrigue/mars/ • In this class, we went over: • What does GEOgraphy have to do with Mars? • The history of Mars exploration • The basics of remote sensing • Spacecraft and their sensors • Mars as a planet in the solar system • The landscapes of Mars • The climates and weather of Mars • Mars as it affects human imagination

16. So, on to Mars!

17. Mars in Space • Size • Mars’ and Earth’s relative sizes compared • Radius: ~3,400 km Mars vs. 6,400 km Earth • Volume: Mars is ~ 15% of Earth • Mass: Mars is ~ 10% of Earth • Gravity: Mars has ~38% of Earth's

18. Mars in Space • Orbital Characteristics • Mars’ and Earth’s distance from the Sun • Mars is about 227,936,640 km from the Sun averaged along the semi-major axis • Earth is 149,597,890 km • Solar irradiance at Mars is about 590 W/m2 versus 1,350 W/m2 at Earth (~44%)

19. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Vastitas (vastitates) : An extensive, vast plain

20. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Planum (plana) : A plateau or high plain • Meridiani Planum seen from Opportunity’s Pancam

21. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Planitia (planitiæ) : A low-lying plain or lowland • Elysium Planitia (ESA Mars Express HRSC): pack ice?

22. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Terra (terræ) : An extensive land mass • Arabia Terra (NASA Marsoweb server)

23. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Chaos: an area of broken or blocky terrain • Aram Chaos (ESA Mars Express HRSC)

24. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Chasma (chasmata): a deep, elongated, steep-sided depression • Ganges Chasma: eastern end of Valles Marineris system NASA Mars Odyssey THEMIS nighttime temperature image)

25. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Vallis (valles): a valley or canyon • Ma’adim Vallis (Viking image) • (and Gusev Crater, where Spirit landed)

26. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Fossa (fossæ): a long, narrow depression • Claritas Fossæ, in Solis Planum (ESA Mars Express HRSC)

27. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Labes: landslide • Valles Marineris (Viking)

28. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Labyrinthus (labyrinthi): complex of intersecting valleys or ridges • Noctis Labyrinthus map (west of Valles Marineris, east of Pavonis Mons)

29. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Crater: a circular depression or impact feature • Crater with ice in Vastitas Borealis, Mars Express • Hellas, MOLA • Phobos, Stickney Crater

30. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Catena (catenæ): a line or chain of craters • Coprates Catenæ: impacts or pitting? (Mars Express HRSC)

31. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Mensa (mensæ): mesa or flat-topped prominence with steep sides • Ausonia Mensa in southwest Hesperia Planum (Mars Express HRSC)

32. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Colles: small hills or knobs • Ariadnes Colles in Cimmeria, MGS MOC, possibly eroded remnants of deposits on crater floor

33. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Tholus, tholi: small conical mountain or hill • Uranius Tholus, Tharsis (Viking)

34. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Mons (montes): large mountain (as in really large, on Mars) • Olympus Mons (Viking)

35. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Patera (pateræ): an irregular crater or volcano with scalloped edges • Alba Patera (MGS MOLA) • Apollinaris Patera (MGS MOC)

36. Mars: Nomenclature • Mars Features • Undæ: dunes • Sand Hills of Nili Patera, Syrtis Major (MGS Mars Orbiter Camera or MOC)