Cryovolcanism on Ceres

Cryovolcanism on Ceres.

Volcanic edifices are abundant on rocky bodies of the inner solar system. In the cold outer solar system, volcanism can occur on solid bodies with a water-ice shell, but derived cryovolcanic constructs have proved elusive. We report the discovery, using Dawn Framing Camera images, of a landform on dwarf planet Ceres that we argue represents a viscous cryovolcanic dome. Parent material of the cr...

Geochemistry, Thermal Evolution, and Cryovolcanism on Ceres with a Muddy Ice Mantle

Introduction: Interpretation of data acquired at Ceres by the Dawn spacecraft demands a model for the evolution of Ceres’ structure and composition to date. In a recent paper [1], we presented such a model, consistent with pre-Dawn observations and preliminary data returned by Dawn. Here, we describe this model, compare its physico-chemical outcomes to reported observations, and outline possibl...

Distribution of phyllosilicates on Ceres

Eleonora Ammannito (1), Maria Cristina De Sanctis (2), Mauro Ciarniello (2), Alessandro Frigeri (2), Filippo Giacomo Carrozzo (2), Jean Philippe Combe (3), Bethany Ehlmann (4), Simone Marchi (5), Hap Y. McSween (6), Andrea Raponi (2), Julie C. Castillo-Rogez (7), Michael J. Toplis (8), Federico Tosi (2), Andrea Longobardo (2), Ernesto Palomba (2), Carle M. Pieters (9), Carol A. Raymond (7), Pau...

Cryovolcanism and the Recent Flow of Liquid Water on Mars

The surface of Mars is too cold and dry to permit stable liquid water, yet fresh, apparently water-carved gullies and seepage features have been identified in high-resolution imaging of canyon and crater walls by the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft. Here, a model of nonequilibrium hydrological activity and liquid water cryovolcanism explains the paradoxical appearance and observed properties of...

Cryovolcanism on Titan: New results from Cassini RADAR and VIMS