Volcanism in the Solar System
Part 1: Inner Solar System
Justin Filiberto
Lunar and Planetary Institute
Modified for Rockin’ 2010 by Carla Burns
Plan of Talk
1. Earth - review
2. Inner Solar System
•
•
•
•
Mercury
Venus
Moon
Mars
3. Outer Solar System
•
•
•
•
Io
Enceladus
Titan
Triton
4. Summarize
Volcanoes in the
Solar System
Earth’s Shield Volcanoes
Earth’s Composite/Stratovolcanos
Earth’s
Volcanoes
•
•
•
•
•
Cinder Cone
Caldera Complex
Lava Flows
Tuff Ring
And many more…
Mercury
Volcanoes
Seen by
Messenger
Spacecraft
more to come…
Mercury
Venus Surface Landers:
Venera & VEGA
Venera 13
Surface
SiO 2
TiO2
Al 2 O3
Fe2 O3
FeO
MnO
MgO
CaO
Na2 O
K2 O
SO3
45.1
1.6
15.8
-9.3
0.3
11.4
7.1
-4.00
1.6
Sum
96.1
Sapas Mons
• 400 km
across, 1.5 km
tall
• Slope ~ 0.5°
• Very long
flows
• What type of
Volcano?
Maat Mons
• JPL Press Image
20x Vertical
Exaggeration
• Unexaggerated …
• What type of Volcano?
Pancake Domes
• Single Flows, Steep
sides
• Height 1/2 - 1 km.
• What kind of
volcano?
• What kind of lava?
Pancake Domes
• Rhyolite?
• Or merely cold,
crystal-rich basalt?
• What kind of
volcano?
• What kind of lava?
?
• Low cones in
flat lava plains
• A few km
diam. (5 km
for inset)
• What type of
lava?
• What kind of
volcano?
Moon
• 1/3 diam of Earth
• 1/6 gravity
• Dark, low, mare
plains.
Mare Plains
Channels
Domes
• Gruithuisen domes
• 20 km across, 1.2
km tall. Avg ~7°
slope; steepest ~20°.
• Are these volcanic?
• If so, what are they
most like on Earth?
Mars
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•
•
•
•
Mars Earth
From Sun (AU)
1.5
1.0
Mean radius (km) 3386 6371
Mass (1024kg)
0.642 5.98
Surface T (K)
227
295
Gravity (m s-2)
3.7
9.8
Olympus Mons
• 640 x 840 km
across
• 21 km tall
• Avg slope 5°
• What kind of
volcano?
• What kind of
lava?
Lava Flows on
O.M. 1
<-- - - - - 3 km - - - - -->
Tharsis Tholus
• 150 km
across
• 8 km tall
• What kind of
volcano?
• What kind of
lava?
On Syrtis Major, a Shield Volcano
• Small Hill
• Steep Slope, ~30°
• Surrounded by thin
lava flows
• What is it?
On Syrtis Major, a Shield Volcano
• Broken Cinder
Cone?
25000
Krafla
Hawaii
Columbia River Basalt Group
Etna
Mt Hood
Olympus Mons
20000
Arsia Mons
Tharsis Tholus
Theia Mons
Sapas Mons
Gruitheuisen Domes
15000
10000
5000
0
-500000
-400000
-300000
-200000
-100000
0
100000
200000
300000
400000
500000
Outer Solar System
• Only “rocky” volcanic body: Io
• Other types of eruptions
– Icy volcanoes
– Geysers
–?
Io
• Moon of Jupiter
• Mean radius (km)
1821 (0.286XEarth)
• Mass (1022kg) 8.93
(0.015XEarth)
• Surface T (K) 130
• Gravity (m s-2) 1.8
(0.2XEarth)
• Most volcanically
active body in the
solar system.
Evidence for Volcanism
• Surface Changes
• Gas Plumes
Loki Patera…
• Active Lava Lake?
Ra Patera
• Diameter-450 km
• Height <1km
• Area of Lava250,000km2
• What type of
volcano?
• Lava type?
Ra Patera
25000
Krafla
Hawaii
Columbia River Basalt Group
Etna
Mt Hood
Olympus Mons
20000
Arsia Mons
Tharsis Tholus
Theia Mons
Sapas Mons
Ra Patera
Gruitheuisen Domes
15000
10000
5000
0
-500000
-400000
-300000
-200000
-100000
0
100000
200000
300000
400000
500000
Pele
• Pele eruption lava >1350°C
– Hawaiian lavas ~1000°C
• Lava type?
• Volcano?
Enceladus
• Moon of Saturn
• Mean radius (km)
251 (0.04XEarth)
• Mass (1020kg) 1.1
(1.8x10-5XEarth)
• Surface T (K) 75
• Gravity (m s-2) 0.1
(0.01XEarth)
• Icy Surface
“Tiger Stripe” Ridges
Enceladus Erupts
Titan
• Moon of Saturn
• Mean radius (km)
2576 (0.4XEarth)
• Mass (1023kg) 1.35
(0.023XEarth)
• Surface T (K) 94
• Gravity (m s-2) 1.4
• Largest moon of
Saturn
• Only object with
stable liquid on the
surface (other than
the Earth)
Icy Volcano?
Icy Volcano?
Triton
• Moon of Neptune
• Mean radius (km)
1353 (0.2XEarth)
• Mass (1022kg) 2.1
(0.0036XEarth)
• Surface T (K) 38
• Gravity (m s-2) 0.78
• Surface is frozen
nitrogen and water
Triton Cryovolcanism?
• Bluish streaks – geysers of nitrogen?
Outer Planet Summary
• Possible old volcanoes on Ganymede, and
Europa similar to Enceladus?
• Possible old volcanoes on Dione and
Tethys?
• Possible volcanoes on Pluto?
• More data coming from New Horizons may
answer some of these questions…
Some questions to ponder
• What types of volcanoes are common to
the Earth only? Why?
• What types of volcanoes are common in
the inner solar system but not the outer?
Why?
• What does this suggest about the cooling
histories of the inner planets? Outer
planets?
Some questions to ponder
• From the volcanoes we have seen which
ones would we expect on which planets?
• What do they suggest about other
planets?
• Since most of us do not live near a
volcano, how can students connect
volcanoes on the Earth and other planets?