冥王星的地质活力源于一个富含气和冰的挥发层
William B McKinnon1, Francis Nimmo2, Teresa Wong1
1Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences and McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences, Washington University in St Louis, Saint Louis, Missouri 63130, USA.
Nature
|June 3, 2016
概括
冥王星的 Sputnik Planum 由于其冰层的固态对流而表现出地质活动. 这个由热流驱动的过程塑造了冰冷的表面, 也可能发生在其他矮行星上.
科学领域:
- 星球科学
- 地质学
- 冰川学
背景情况:
- 冥王星上的Sputnik Planum是一个充满挥发性冰的大盆地, 主要是.
- 盆地表面有组织的对流细胞, 暗示内部地质活动.
研究的目的:
- 在Sputnik Planum的冰层中研究固态对流的可能性.
- 解释了冥王星表面上观察到的对流细胞规模.
主要方法:
- 对冰的可用气态测量分析.
- 在多公里厚的冰层中对流翻的数值建模.
主要成果:
- 预计在冥王星目前的热流条件下, 厚度大于一公里的冰层会对流.
- 数字模拟表明,对流翻可以解释Sputnik Planum表面细胞的大侧宽度.
- 冰层以"缓慢的盖子"模式对流,这种模式在太阳系的其他地方没有被确切地观察到.
结论:
- 固态对流是Sputnik Planum地质活动的可能驱动因素.
- 冥王星表面的更新过程比表面的估计年龄更短.
- 类似的对流过程可能解释了其他柯伊伯带矮行星的高度.
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