Publication Date:
2013-02-27
Description:
Observations from Cassini VIMS and ISS show localized but extensive surface brightenings in thewake of the 2010 September cloudburst. Four separate areas, all at similar latitude, show similarchanges: Yalaing Terra, Hetpet Regio, Concordia Regio, and Adiri. Our analysis shows a generalpattern to the time-sequence of surface changes: after the cloudburst the areas darken for months,then brighten for a year before reverting to their original spectrum. From the rapid reversiontimescale we infer that the process driving the brightening owes to a fine-grained solidified surfacelayer. The specific chemical composition of such solid layer remains unknown. Evaporative coolingof wetted terrain may play a role in the generation of the layer, or it may result from a physicalgrain-sorting process.
Electronic ISSN:
2191-2521
Topics:
Geosciences
,
Physics
Permalink