Martian glaciation and the flow of solid CO2

Abstract

The flow law determined experimentally for solid CO2 establishes that a hypothesis of glacial flow of CO2 at the Martian poles is not physically unrealistic. Compression experiments carried out under 1 atm pressure and constant strain rate demonstrate that the strength of CO2 near its sublimation point is considerably less than the strength of water ice near its melting point. The data fit a power law "creep" equation of the form , where is compressive strain rate (sec-1), [sigma] is compressive stress (bars), R is the gas constant in calories per mole, and T is absolute temperature. The exponent of [sigma] of 3.9 contrasts with a value near 3.1 for water ice, and indicates that the strain rate is somewhat more sensitive to stress for CO2 than for water. Likewise, the low activation energy for creep, 12 200 cal mole-1, illustrates that CO2 is not highly sensitive to temperature and is thus likely to flow over a broad range of temperatures below its melting point. Strength values for CO2 are of the order of one-tenth to one-third the strength of ice under equivalent conditions.A plausible glacial model for the Martian polar caps can be constructed and is helpful in explaining the unique character of the polar regions. CO2-rich layers deposited near the pole would have flowed outward laterally to relieve high internal shear stresses. The topography of the polar caps, the uniform layering of the layered deposits, and the general extent of the polar "sediments" could all be explained using this model. Flow of CO2 rather than water ice greatly reduces the problems with Martian glaciation. Nevertheless, problems do remain, in particular the large amounts of CO2 necessary, the need to increase vapor pressure and temperature with depth in the polar deposits, and the lack of good observational evidence of flor features. Within the limits of the present knowledge of surface conditions of Mars, CO2 glaciation appears to be a realistic alternate working hypothesis for the origin of the polar features.