Stratigraphic analysis of the northern polar layered deposits of Mars: Implications for recent climate history

We examine the stratigraphy of the polar layered deposits (PLD) within the north polar cap of Mars to assess its layer continuity, correlations, cyclicity and structure and implications for the recent climate record. PLD sequences characterized using Fourier analysis and curve shape matching algorithms show that layers correlate throughout the upper part of the PLD. We tested for cyclicity and found that the uppermost ∼300 m contain a dominant wavelength layer packet of ∼30 m, interpreted to be a climate signal related to the 51 kyr precession cycle. Directly below this region we document a section of polar layered deposits ∼100 m thick without a dominant periodic signal; this is interpreted to represent a phase of low net accumulation and lag deposits formed during the last ice age, about 0.5–2 Ma ago. We further analyzed layer structure by combining these results with three-dimensional determinations of layer orientation (strike and dip) to assess the internal stratigraphy of the PLD and its implications for polar history. We show that individual layers within the PLD stratigraphy are not horizontal (no dip) but rather show broad variation in elevation with distance. Correlations suggest that the layer strikes and dips broadly follow present cap surface topography. Local variations in layer orientations in the vicinity of the troughs suggest that (1) trough structures were present at the time of layer accumulation and (2) dips may have been influenced by ice flow and/or static ice accumulation in the presence of preexisting troughs. This new information favors models in which the troughs are long-term structures of the PLD rather than (1) recently eroded into the PLD, or (2) very active and laterally migrating around the PLD. Our results strongly support the hypothesis that significant volumes of polar volatiles are mobilized and transported equator-ward during periods of increased obliquity. Our results predict that the upper ∼300 m of the north polar PLD accumulated in the last 500 ka, yielding net accumulation rates of ∼0.06 cm/yr. The presence and albedo of the no periodic signal zone suggest that polar net accumulation rates are very low and that dust rich lag deposits form during periods of sustained high obliquity. Layer sequences in the south polar and equatorial regions are examined and compared to those in the north; rhythmic sequences are observed in both regions but no direct correlations to the dominant signals of the north polar deposits have yet been found. These new techniques and observations provide a paradigm for further analysis of recent polar history (the upper kilometer of the record) and a basis for extending assessments to the lower part of the polar deposits and to other cyclic deposits in the geological record of Mars.