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Perepelkin (Martian crater)

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Perepelkin (Martian crater)

Perepelkin Crater is an impact crater in the Arcadia quadrangle of the planet Mars. It is located at 52.8°N latitude and 64.6°W longitude. It is 112.0  km in diameter. It was named after Yevgeny Perepyolkin; the name was approved in 1973 by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature (WGPSN). Much of the crater is covered with a mantle that is believed to be ice-rich and to have fallen from the atmosphere when the climate was different. In one of the images below mantle can be seen; also some places when the mantle has disappeared, channels are visible.

Mantle

Researchers have noticed a smooth mantle covering much of Mars. Some parts are eroded revealing rough surfaces while others possess layers. It’s generally accepted that mantle is ice-rich dust that fell from the sky as snow and ice-coated dust grains during a different climate One evidence of its ice-rich nature is the presence of gullies which form when some of the ice melts. Only a few hours of flow can result in erosion . In higher latitudes, such as around Milankovic Crater, the mantle is thicker and may contain rounded shapes called scallops . These are thought to be caused by the sublimation of ice in the mantle. Several models have been advanced to explain them; some include a small amount of melting at times.

References

Perepelkin (Martian crater) Wikipedia