2014/12/11 by Giovanni Leone, Paul Tackley, Taras Gerya +2 · 83 citations
Physics and Astronomy · Earth and Planetary Sciences · #Planetary Science and Exploration #Astro and Planetary Science #Geology and Paleoclimatology Research #Martian #Geology #Volcanism #Mars Exploration Program #Mantle (geology) #Geophysics #Martian surface #Earth science #Polar #Astrobiology #Paleontology #Tectonics #Physics
paper · open access · doi:10.1002/2014gl062261
published in Geophysical Research Letters 41(24), 8736-8743 (American Geophysical Union)
openalex publication_date 2014/12/11 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/26
Abstract We demonstrate via numerical simulations that the impact of a ~lunar‐sized body with Mars is capable of creating a hemispherical magma ocean that upon cooling and solidification resulted in the formation of the southern highlands and thus the Martian dichotomy. The giant impact may have contributed a significant amount of iron to the Martian core and generated a deep thermal anomaly that led to the onset and development of the volcanism in the southern highlands. Our model predicts several mantle plumes converging to the South Pole from the equatorial regions as well as new plumes forming in the equatorial region and also an absence of significant large‐scale volcanism in the northern lowlands. The core heat flux evolution obtained from our numerical models is consistent with the decline of the magnetic field. We argue that such a scenario is more consistent with a range of observations than a northern giant impact (excavating the Borealis basin) for the formation of the Martian dichotomy.