Strain Analysis of Graben in Claritas Fossae, Mars

Claritas Fossae hosts some of the oldest rocks on the Martian surface (Early Noachian Highland and Middle Noachian Highland as defined by Tanaka et al., [2014]). An in-depth analysis of Claritas Fosse is ongoing to characterize the past tectonic deformation of early Mars in the Tharsis region. We examine a small section of Claritas near 26°S 105°W that displays apparent imbricate normal faulting. Preliminary findings by Fewell et al., 2016 suggest that Claritas was subject to widespread extension. However, early observations suggest that some contractional deformation may have been required to produce the current topography. This analysis builds on the geologic map presented by Fewell et al., [2016], and utilizes maximum displacement / fault trace length (D_Max/L) and fault trace linkage methods used by Cartwright et al., 1995, Shultz et al.,[2006], and Wyrick et al., [2011] to better understand some of the oldest recorded tectonic signatures on Mars.

Works Cited:

Cartwright, J.A., Trudgill, B.D., Mansfield, C.S., 1995. Fault growth by segment linkage: An explanation for scatter in maximum displacement and trace length data from the Canyonlands Grabens of SE Utah. J. Struct. Geol. 17, 1319-1326.

Fewell, Nolan. Siwabessy, Andrew. Anderson, Robert C. Geologic Map of Claritas Fossae - Mars. Poster presented at: American Geophysical Union Annual Meeting: 2016 December 12-16; San Francsico, California.

Schultz, R.A., Okubo, C.H., Wilkins, S.J., 2006. Displacement-length scaling relations for faults on the terrestrial planets. J. Struct. Geol. 28, 2182-2193.

Tanaka, K.L., Skinner, J.A., Jr., Dohm, J.M., Irwin, R.P., III, Kolb, E.J., Fortezzo, C.M., Platz, T., Michael, G.G., and Hare, T.M., 2014, Geologic map of Mars: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Map 3292, scale 1:20,000,000, pamphlet 43 p., https://dx.doi.org/10.3133/sim3292.