Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Ice has been detected on every solid planet and moon in the solar system except Venus and Io, one of Jupiter's moons. In the inner solar system, ice is always found near the poles, in permanently shadowed, polar craters for the moon, and Mercury or in polar deposits on Ceres. On Earth and Mars the ice forms thick polar layered deposits on the surface that record climate history, and at lower latitudes the ice can be found in glaciers. Farther away from the sun, moons and planets may have ice cover their entire surface or themselves be composed primarily of ice. Starting at Mars, water ice is no longer the only volatile. Carbon dioxide deposits permanently reside on the south polar cap, and seasonal frost covers approximately half of the planet during some portion of the year. As far as Pluto, there are numerous known ices, including water ice, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, carbon monoxide, and methane. Each ice has its own volatile cycle based on local temperature and pressure and can be transported to new locations via atmospheric or glacial processes. In both cases ice reshapes the landscape. Thus, ice processes, especially the interaction with the local geology and atmosphere, are critical for our understanding of planetary evolution. The long-term objectives of this research program are to understand the physical processes of various ices throughout the solar system and their effects on planetary surfaces. Short-term objectives will focus on three main themes: 1) Data analysis to search for ice and climate signals on Mars 2) Computer simulations of ice and atmosphere processes 3) Laboratory investigations of behavior of CO2 and N2 ices in relevant conditions Each of these themes is designed to contribute to a cohesive research program that integrates ice behavior and processes to better understand surface morphology and surface processes throughout the solar system. By carrying out the program, we will increase our knowledge of planetary cryospheres (icy portions of each planet) from the inner solar system to its farthest reaches. The project will provide opportunities for training Highly Qualified Personnel at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. This is an innovative and novel approach because no other research groups are working on the same topics to characterize cryosphere systems as a whole.