Global InformationAeolis quadrangle information
 Map of Aeolis quadrangle from Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA) data. The highest elevations are red and the lowest are blue. The Spirit rover landed in Gusev crater. Aeolis Mons is in Gale Crater. | |
| Coordinates | 15°00′S 202°30′W / 15°S 202.5°W |
|---|---|
The Aeolis quadrangle is one of a series of 30 quadrangle maps of Mars used by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Astrogeology Research Program. The Aeolis quadrangle is also referred to as MC-23 (Mars Chart-23).[1] The Aeolis quadrangle covers 180° to 225° W and 0° to 30° south on Mars, and contains parts of the regions Elysium Planitia and Terra Cimmeria. A small part of the Medusae Fossae Formation lies in this quadrangle.
The name refers to the name of a floating western island of Aeolus, the ruler of the winds. In Homer's account, Odysseus received the west wind Zephyr here and kept it in bags, but the wind got out.[2] [3]
It is famous as the site of two spacecraft landings: the Spirit rover landing site (14°34′18″S 175°28′43″E / 14.5718°S 175.4785°E) in Gusev crater (January 4, 2004), and the Curiosity rover in Gale Crater (4°35′31″S 137°26′25″E / 4.591817°S 137.440247°E) (August 6, 2012).[4]
A large, ancient river valley, called Ma'adim Vallis, enters at the south rim of Gusev Crater, so Gusev Crater was believed to be an ancient lake bed. However, it seems that a volcanic flow covered up the lakebed sediments.[5] Apollinaris Patera, a large volcano, lies directly north of Gusev Crater.[6]
Gale Crater, in the northwestern part of the Aeolis quadrangle, is of special interest to geologists because it contains a 2–4 km (1.2–2.5 mi) high mound of layered sedimentary rocks, named "Mount Sharp" by NASA in honor of Robert P. Sharp (1911–2004), a planetary scientist of early Mars missions.[7][8][9] More recently, on 16 May 2012, "Mount Sharp" was officially named Aeolis Mons by the USGS and IAU.[10]
Some regions in the Aeolis quadrangle show inverted relief.[11] In these locations, a stream bed may be a raised feature, instead of a valley. The inverted former stream channels may be caused by the deposition of large rocks or due to cementation. In either case erosion would erode the surrounding land but leave the old channel as a raised ridge because the ridge will be more resistant to erosion
Yardangs are another feature found in this quadrangle. They are generally visible as a series of parallel linear ridges, caused by the direction of the prevailing wind.
- ^ Davies, M.E.; Batson, R.M.; Wu, S.S.C. "Geodesy and Cartography" in Kieffer, H.H.; Jakosky, B.M.; Snyder, C.W.; Matthews, M.S., Eds. Mars. University of Arizona Press: Tucson, 1992.
- ^ "Planetary Names".
- ^ Blunck, J. 1982. Mars and its Satellites. Exposition Press. Smithtown, N.Y.
- ^ NASA Staff (6 August 2012). "NASA Lands Car-Size Rover Beside Martian Mountain". NASA/JPL. Archived from the original on 2012-08-14. Retrieved 2012-08-07.
- ^ "Spirit rover follows up on scientific surprises". NBC News. 4 January 2005. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
- ^ U.S. department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey, Topographic Map of the Eastern Region of Mars M 15M 0/270 2AT, 1991
- ^ NASA Staff (27 March 2012). "'Mount Sharp' on Mars Compared to Three Big Mountains on Earth". NASA. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
- ^ Agle, D. C. (28 March 2012). "'Mount Sharp' On Mars Links Geology's Past and Future". NASA. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
- ^ Staff (29 March 2012). "NASA's New Mars Rover Will Explore Towering 'Mount Sharp'". Space.com. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
- ^ USGS (16 May 2012). "Three New Names Approved for Features on Mars". USGS. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
- ^ Ori, G., I. Di Pietro, F. Salese. 2015. A WATERLOGGED MARTIAN ENVIRONMENT: CHANNEL PATTERNS AND SEDIMENTARY ENVIRONMENTS OF THE ZEPHYRIA ALLUVIAL PLAIN. 46th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (2015) 2527.pdf