Martian lava tube

Longitudinal cross-section of a martian lava tube with skylight
Transverse cross-section of a martian lava tube
Cropped version of a HiRISE image of a lava tube skylight entrance on the Martian volcano Pavonis Mons.
Petunia skylight in the roof of an Eartian lava tube associated with Prince Kuhio Kalaniana`ole (PKK) flows of Kīlauea on the Big Island of Hawaii. View looks downstream.

Martian lava tubes are volcanic caverns on Mars that are believed to form as a result of fast-moving, basaltic lava flows associated with shield volcanism.[1] Lava tubes usually form when the external surface of the lava channels cools more quickly and forms a hardened crust over subsurface lava flows.[2] The flow eventually ceases and drains out of the tube, leaving a conduit-shaped void space which is usually several meters below the surface. Lava tubes are typically associated with extremely fluid pahoehoe lava.[3] Gravity on mars is about 38% that of Earth's, allowing Martian lava tubes to be much larger in comparison.

  1. ^ Daga, Andrew; Allen, Carlton; Battler, Melissa; Burke, James; Crawford, Ian; Léveillé, Richard; Simon, Steven; Tan, Lin. "Lunar and Martian Lava Tube Exploration as Part of an Overall Scientific Survey" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 October 2013. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
  2. ^ Léveillé, Richard; Datta, Saugata (2010). "Lava tubes and basaltic caves as astrobiological targets on Earth and Mars: A review". Planetary and Space Science. 58 (4): 592–598. Bibcode:2010P&SS...58..592L. doi:10.1016/j.pss.2009.06.004.
  3. ^ Walden, Bryce; Billings, Thomas; York, Cheryl; Gillett, Stephen; Herbert, Mark. "Utility of Lava Tubes on Other Worlds". The Planetary Society. Archived from the original on 13 April 2014. Retrieved 25 February 2014.