Mud frozen after flowing under pressure and temperature conditions like those found on Mars. The lobe shapes and cavities are normally associated with lava on Earth.
Mud frozen after flowing under pressure and temperature conditions like those found on Mars. The lobe shapes and cavities are normally associated with lava on Earth. Bro¸ et al. Nature Geoscience - The surface of the planet Mars bears probable traces of -sedimentary volcanism-, a geological phenomenon that leads to the eruption of mud from underground. But how does a mixture of sediment and water behave in the open air on the Red Planet? Conditions there are extremely different from those on Earth - atmospheric pressure is 150 times lower and temperatures are generally negative. An international research team including Susan Conway, a CNRS researcher at the Laboratory of Planetology and Geodynamics (CNRS/Université de Nantes/Université Angers) recreated martian conditions in a low-pressure chamber to observe the flow of mud. These experiments showed that the mud can behave in the same way as certain lava flows on Earth that are called pahoehoe and are characterised by numerous lobes.
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