THE MARTIAN GEOMORPHOLOGY AS MAPPED BY THE MARS EXPRESS HIGH RESOLUTION STEREO CAMERA (HRSC): IMPLICATIONS FOR GEOLOGICAL PROCESSES AND CLIMATE CONDITIONS

Imagery is the major source for our current understanding of the geologic evolution of Mars in qualitative and quantitative terms. Imaging is required to enhance our knowledge of Mars with respect to geological processes occurring on local, regional and global scales and is an essential prerequisite for detailed surface exploration. The High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) of ESA’s Mars Express Mission (MEx) is designed to simultaneously map the morphology, topography, structure and geologic context of the surface of Mars as well as atmospheric phenomena [1].The HRSC directly addresses two of the main scientific goals of the Mars Express mission: (1) High-resolution three-dimensional photogeologic surface exploration and (2) the investigation of surface-atmosphere interactions over time; and significantly supports: (3) the study of atmospheric phenomena by multi-angle coverage and limb sounding as well as (4) multispectral mapping by providing high-resolution three-dimensional color context information. In addition, the stereoscopic imagery will especially characterize landing sites and their geologic context [1]. The HRSC surface resolution and the digital terrain models bridge the gap in scales between highest ground resolution images (e.g., HiRISE) and global coverage observations (e.g., Viking). This is also the case with respect to DTMs (e.g., MOLA and local high-resolution DTMs). HRSC is also used as cartographic basis to correlate between panchromatic and multispectral stereo data. The unique multi-angle imaging technique of the HRSC supports its stereo capability by providing not only a stereo triplet but also a stereo quintuplet, making the photogrammetric processing very robust [1, 2]. The capabilities for three-dimensional orbital reconnaissance of the Martian surface are ideally met by HRSC making this camera unique in the international Mars exploration effort.The geomorphological analyses of surface features, observed by the HRSC indicate major surface modifications by endogenic and exogenic processes at all scales [e.g. 3].

Acknowledgement: We thank the HRSC Co-Investigator and Science Team for their support.

References: [1] Jaumann et al., 2007, PSS 55; [2] Gwinner et al., 2010, EPSL 294; [3] Jaumann et al., 2014, PSS, subm..