Hypanis Valles

Hypanis Valles
Proposed (but rejected) Mars Science Laboratory landing site in the Hypanis Valles
Coordinates9°36′N 46°42′W / 9.6°N 46.7°W / 9.6; -46.7
Length231.0 km
NamingClassical name for river in Scythia; present Kuban River in Russia.

The Hypanis Valles are a set of channels in a 270 km valley in Xanthe Terra on Mars at 11° N, 314° E, in the Lunae Palus quadrangle. They appear to have been carved by long-lived flowing water, and a significant deposit (interpreted by some to be a river delta) exists at their outlet into the lowlands.[1]

The feature was named for a river in Scythia; present Kuban River in Russia.[2]

  • Map showing location of the Hypanis Valles (indicated with an arrow) and nearby features
    Map showing location of the Hypanis Valles (indicated with an arrow) and nearby features

Research described at a Planetary Conference in Texas in the spring of 2018 suggested that the Hypanis Valles fan complex is a delta with multiple channels and lobes, which formed at the margin of a large, standing body of water. That body of water was a northern ocean. This delta is at the dichotomy boundary between the northern lowlands and southern highlands near Chryse Planitia. It is the largest proposed delta system on Mars.[3]

  • A location in the Hypanis Valles, as seen by HiRISE (scale bar is 500 m)
    A location in the Hypanis Valles, as seen by HiRISE (scale bar is 500 m)
  1. ^ Sites of Potential Long Term Sub-surface Water, Mineral-rich Environments, and Deposition in South Elysium Planitia, Hellas-Dao Vallis, Isidis Basin, and Xanthe-Hypanis Vallis: Candidate Mars Science Laboratory Landing Sites. L. S. Crumpler.
  2. ^ "Hypanis Valles". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
  3. ^ Fawdon, P., et al. 2018. HYPANIS VALLES DELTA: THE LAST HIGH-STAND OF A SEA ON EARLY MARS. 49th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference 2018 (LPI Contrib. No. 2083). 2839.pdf