Thermal Modeling of Oxia Planum - Thermophysical Characterization of the Dark Resistant Unit (DRU) in the Germania Lacus

Sep 10, 2026

Thermal Modeling of Oxia Planum investigates the dark resistant unit (DRU) in Germania Lacus from a thermophysical perspective, aiming to constrain the nature of the materials composing this unit. The study analyzes DRU temperature distributions using thermophysical parameter values typical of basalt while varying porosity, and it also tests a pebble-based composition. A large-scale topography and a diurnal atmospheric temperature profile are incorporated, followed by comparisons with Mars Pathfinder and Viking data and other numerical models. The methodology supports characterization of other Martian sites with small-scale topographic data.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages11

Reading Time28 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Numerical Model

Energy balance and atmospheric effects

Model setup and parameter variations

Numerical Results and Model Testing

Summary and Conclusions

Hindawi Advances in Astronomy Volume 2023, Article ID 8869504, 11 pages [https://doi.org/10.1155/2023/8869504](https://doi.org/10.1155/2023/8869504) Research Article Thermal Modeling of Oxia Planum: Thermophysical Characterization of the Dark Resistant Unit (DRU) in the Germania Lacus M. Formisano , 1 F. Altieri , 1 A. Frigeri , 1 M. C. De Sanctis , 1 C. Federico, 1 G. Magni,1 E. Ammannito ,2 S. De Angelis , 1 and M. Ferrari 1 1INAF-IAPS, Via del Fosso del Cavaliere 100, Rome, Italy 2 Italian Space Agency (ASI), Rome, Italy Correspondence should be addressed to M. Formisano; [michelangelo.formisano@inaf.it](michelangelo.formisano@inaf.it) Received 17 March 2023; Revised 2 May 2023; Accepted 6 May 2023; Published 9 June 2023 Academic Editor: Michael Kueppers Copyright © 2023 M. Formisano et al. Tis is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Te aim of this work is to characterize, from a thermophysical perspective, the dark resistant unit (DRU) characterizing Germania Lacus in the Oxia Planum Region, providing new insights to constrain the nature of the materials which compose this unit. We investigated the temperature distribution ofthe DRUby adopting common values of the thermophysical parameters of the basalt and by exploring several values of porosity. As an additional case, we also explore a composition made of pebbles. Te numerical model developed here represents a follow-up of the work recently published by Formisano et al. 2021, and it takes into account a large-scale topography of the site and assumes a diurnal temperature profle for the atmosphere rather than a constant value (unlike Formisano et al. 2021). Comparisons with Mars Pathfnder and Viking data as well as numerical models are also reported. Te methodology described here could be useful to characterize as well other sites on Mars’ surface with available small-scale topographic data. 1. Introduction Oxia Planum is the selected landing site for the mission Rosalind Franklin planned to land on Mars on 2030. Rosalind Franklin is part of the European Space Agency (ESA) program ExoMars whose principal target is to search for traces of present or past life on Mars [1]. Te 150 by 15 km landing site is located at a latitude of 18°N at the margin of Chryse Planitia basin. Te major geologic characteristics of the landing area of Rosalind Franklin are that it is ancient [2] and morphological and compositional orbital observations suggest a paleoenvironment where water played a key role [3, 4]. Oxia Planum’s thermophysical and compositional characteristics are a matter of debate since in the literature, we fnd several estimates of thermal inertia for a variety of its terrains. Based on the observations of the planetary brightness temperature of the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS), the Termal Emission Spectrometer (TES) provides a value of thermal inertia between 300 and 400 thermal inertia units (TIUs (J·m−2 · K−1·s−1/2) hereafter) [5] . In [6], the terrain of Oxia Planum is interpreted as consisting of dark fnes, with some coarse sand and duricrust, but very little dust, with grain sizes below 3 mm: in this case, the estimated value of thermal inertia is around 260 TIU. Quantin-Nataf [4], however, showed an extensive distribution of clay-bearing terrains, whose thermal inertia is in the range 550–650 TIU, while Gary-Bicas and Rogers [7] characterized the clay unit with a thermal inertia around 370–380 TIU, by using the Termal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) data. Te rover of the ExoMars mission is equipped with a drilling system able to penetrate the Mars surface down to 2 meters to search for astrobiological signatures. Attached to the drill system is the Mars Multispectral Imager for Subsurface (MA_MISS), which will generate hyperspectral images [8–11], providing information

FAQs

What is the main objective of the thermal modeling study for Oxia Planum?

The study aims to thermophysically characterize the dark resistant unit (DRU) in Germania Lacus to gain constraints on the materials that compose it.

How is the DRU modeled in this work?

The modeling uses thermophysical parameters typical of basalt, explores multiple porosity values, and includes an additional case with a pebble-based composition.

What assumptions about the atmosphere and site geometry are included?

The model uses a diurnal atmospheric temperature profile and accounts for large-scale topography, enabling investigation of indirect-light effects in areas not directly illuminated.

Sep 10, 2026

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