A giant crater on Mars could be the remains of an ancient supervolcano.
The finding comes from a "vast circular basin" in the Arabia Terra on the Martian surface, a Planetary Science Institute press release reported. Researchers once thought the spectacle was a large crater, but now they believe it may be the remains of an ancient supervolcano eruption.
"On Mars, young volcanoes have a very distinctive appearance that allows us to identify them," project leader Joseph R. Michalski, said. "The long-standing question has been what ancient volcanoes on Mars look like. Perhaps they look like this one."
The research team also believes a body of magma containing dissolved gas (similar to carbonation in soft drinks) "bubbled up" through the Red Planet's crust to the surface. If this is the case, the volcano would have displayed an impressive and deadly explosion similar to a soda can that has been shaken.
"This highly explosive type of eruption is a game-changer, spewing many times more ash and other material than typical, younger Martian volcanoes," co-author Jacob E. Bleacher, of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, said. "During these types of eruptions on Earth, the debris may spread so far through the atmosphere and remain so long that it alters the global temperature for years."
Once the material erupts from the volcano, the resulting depression can sink into the ground, causing a crater-like appearance. A similar eruption took place in what is now Yellowstone National Park thousands of years ago.
Researchers noticed there was something different about the crater/volcano, called Eden Patera, when they observed a lack of a "typical raised rim of an impact crater."
The researchers have found several other volcano candidates nearby, which suggests the Arabia Terra may have had significant volcanic activity.
"If just a handful of volcanoes like these were once active, they could have had a major impact on the evolution of Mars," Bleacher said.
