(ORDO NEWS) — A team of researchers from the International Research School of Planetary Science (IRSPS) conducted a geological analysis of the Monad region on Triton to determine the geological processes responsible for the formation of the moon‘s surface.
The scientists created a geomorphological map of the Monad region at a scale of 1:1,000,000.
They then used a combination of images from NASA‘s Voyager 2 spacecraft, a roughness map of the study area, and a digital elevation model to conduct a geological analysis of the area.
“Most of the morphologies we have observed on Triton are the result of internal geological activity on the moon, such as diapirism, explosive events, faults, cryovolcanism, and the subsequent cryolava flow,” said Dr. Sulcanese, author of the study.
“However, we conclude that after this first endogenous phase, some of these landforms in the Monad region were further altered by the deposition and flow of solid and liquid nitrogen, which formed features strikingly similar to terrestrial glaciers, moraines, gadflies, channels, and even coastal lines”.
The study notes that while endogenous processes may have been responsible for changing the shape of the moon’s surface early in the evolutionary history of the moon, it is exogenous processes that may be responsible for actively changing the shape of its surface today.
“The almost complete absence of craters on Triton indicates that its surface is extremely young from a geological point of view,” said Dr. Sulcanese.
“It means that there is some process that has changed or may still be changing its surface. While active geyser-like plumes (observed by Voyager 2 in 1989) are likely responsible for this rejuvenation in Triton’s south polar region, exogenous processes may be the cause in the Monad region.”
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