As of: March 29, 2024, 10:59 a.m
By: Tanja Banner
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On the red planet Mars, the 14 kilometer wide Corinto crater is likely to be the youngest giant crater. (Image montage) © NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS/MRO (montage)
A new study reveals fascinating details about the Corinto crater on Mars. The results could change the view of Mars' past.
Munich – Mars is an extremely exciting planet – not just for searching for signs of past life. The planet as a whole also fascinates research. For example, Mars is home to the largest mountain and volcano in the entire solar system. A volcano larger than Earth's Mount Everest was recently discovered there. But the numerous craters on the surface of the red planet also invite exploration - even if only from a distance, as no human has ever set foot on Mars.
Mars' Corinto crater is the youngest large crater on the red planet
A research team has focused on exploring the Corinto Crater in the Elysium Planitia region of Mars using the HiRISE and Context Camera cameras on board NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO). With a diameter of around 14 kilometers, the crater offered enough incentive for the researchers to take a closer look at it. Scientists believe that asteroids large enough to create a crater of this size only hit Mars every three million years.
The research team estimates Corinto's age to be about 2.3 million years old, making it likely the youngest large crater on Mars. "Corinto is a recent impact crater in Elysium Panitia that produced one of the most extensive systems of secondary craters on Mars," the researchers said in a study published at the
Lunar and Planetary Science Conference
that has not yet been peer-reviewed.
Impact on Mars created about two billion craters
The object that created the Corinto crater also created numerous smaller craters in the surrounding area, the research team found. The massive impact ejected fragments from Mars, which rained down on the surrounding area and created more craters. These formed radial patterns that, according to the researchers, are still visible today.
These “secondary” craters, of which the study mentions about two billion, lie mainly south and southwest of Corinto. The most distant material was found by the research team 1,850 kilometers from the main crater. The craters near the main crater are shaped like semicircles, while the craters further away are more elongated and flat.
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Corinto crater provides important clues to Mars' past
Based on the main crater Corinto, the research team was able to make some statements about the impact and the state of Mars at that time. The impacting object, probably an asteroid, came from the north and hit Mars at an angle of around 30 to 45 degrees, according to the study. According to the researchers, it was made of “solid, competent basalt.”
The research team discovered numerous pits inside the crater, which is approximately one kilometer deep. This leads researchers to believe that the Mars region was covered in water or water ice when it was hit about 2.3 million years ago. “The pits on the ground suggest underground drainage or degassing of ice-rich target material,” the study said. This is an important clue for research studying the path and disappearance of water on Mars.
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