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

Abstract

The 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 of the DRU by 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. The 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 profile for the atmosphere rather than a constant value (unlike Formisano et al. 2021). Comparisons with Mars Pathfinder and Viking data as well as numerical models are also reported. The methodology described here could be useful to characterize as well other sites on Mars’ surface with available small-scale topographic data.