Lobate debris apron

Lobate debris aprons (LDAs) are geological features on <a href="/facts/Mars/AQGtVvz0">Mars</a>, first seen by the <a href="/facts/Viking_program/LAaxJUN9">Viking</a> Orbiters, consisting of piles of rock debris below cliffs. These features have a convex topography and a gentle slope from cliffs or <a href="/facts/Escarpment/apJ1d2XB">escarpments</a>, which suggest flow away from the steep source cliff. In addition, lobate debris aprons can show surface <a href="/facts/Lineation_(geology)/WdwIumfv">lineations</a> as do rock glaciers on the Earth.

The <a href="/facts/Mars_Reconnaissance_Orbiter/7odg7YfX">Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter</a>'s Shallow Radar gave a strong reflection from the top and base of LDAs, meaning that pure water ice made up the bulk of the formation (between the two reflections). This is evidence that the LDAs in <a href="/facts/Hellas_Planitia/sX6et9v8">Hellas Planitia</a> are <a href="/facts/Glacier/8GrKVUSS">glaciers</a> covered with a thin layer of rocks. In addition, radar studies in <a href="/facts/Deuteronilus_Mensae/703DuVfd">Deuteronilus Mensae</a> show that all lobate debris aprons examined in that region contain ice.
The experiments of the <a href="/facts/Phoenix_lander/3rKuwcRX">Phoenix lander</a> and the studies of the <a href="/facts/Mars_Odyssey/KapXFdK4">Mars Odyssey</a> from orbit show that <a href="/facts/Water_on_Mars/uBNTfa37">frozen water exists</a> just under the surface of Mars in the far north and south (high latitudes). Most of the ice was deposited as snow when the climate was different. The discovery of water ice in LDAs demonstrates that water is found at even lower latitudes. Future <a href="/facts/Colonization_of_Mars/7En499hD">colonists on Mars</a> will be able to tap into these ice deposits, instead of having to travel to much higher latitudes. Another major advantage of LDAs over other sources of Martian water is that they can easily be detected and mapped from orbit. Lobate debris aprons are shown below from the Phlegra Montes which are at a latitude of 38.2 degrees north. The Phoenix lander set down at about 68 degrees north latitude, so the discovery of water ice in LDAs greatly expands the range of water easily available on Mars. It is far easier to land a spaceship near the equator of Mars, so the closer water is available to the equator, the better it will be for colonists.

Lobate debris apron open-in-new

Lobate debris apron