Short‐Term and Global‐Wide Effusive Volcanism on Mercury Around 3.7 Ga
Abstract Patches of small smooth plains cover a substantial portion of the Mercurian surface, but their origin and relation to the global evolution are not completely understood. Here, we update the global inventory of small smooth plains on Mercury, classifying their spatial distribution, absolute...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2021-10-01
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| Series: | Geophysical Research Letters |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1029/2021GL094503 |
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| author | Yichen Wang Zhiyong Xiao Yiren Chang Rui Xu Jun Cui |
| author_facet | Yichen Wang Zhiyong Xiao Yiren Chang Rui Xu Jun Cui |
| author_sort | Yichen Wang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Patches of small smooth plains cover a substantial portion of the Mercurian surface, but their origin and relation to the global evolution are not completely understood. Here, we update the global inventory of small smooth plains on Mercury, classifying their spatial distribution, absolute model ages, and possible origins. We reveal that both large and small smooth plains on Mercury were dominantly emplaced within ∼200 million years around 3.7 Ga, and at least ∼24.9% of the global surface was resurfaced during this period. Small smooth plains formed by effusive volcanism are preferentially located around the contemporaneous Caloris, Rembrandt, and Beethoven basins and at thin crust areas. We also report small smooth plains that were likely emplaced by basin ejecta. Together with the distribution of similarly aged large smooth plains, our results reveal that peaked formation of large impact basins may be a major trigger for this short‐term and global‐wide volcanism. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-7edb711cef494b3dbf334fcaf90782dc |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 0094-8276 1944-8007 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2021-10-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Geophysical Research Letters |
| spelling | doaj-art-7edb711cef494b3dbf334fcaf90782dc2025-08-20T02:09:35ZengWileyGeophysical Research Letters0094-82761944-80072021-10-014820n/an/a10.1029/2021GL094503Short‐Term and Global‐Wide Effusive Volcanism on Mercury Around 3.7 GaYichen Wang0Zhiyong Xiao1Yiren Chang2Rui Xu3Jun Cui4School of Atmospheric Sciences Planetary Environmental and Astrobiological Research Laboratory Sun Yat‐sen University Zhuhai ChinaSchool of Atmospheric Sciences Planetary Environmental and Astrobiological Research Laboratory Sun Yat‐sen University Zhuhai ChinaState Key Laboratory of Lunar and Planetary Sciences Macau University of Science and Technology Macau ChinaState Key Laboratory of Lunar and Planetary Sciences Macau University of Science and Technology Macau ChinaSchool of Atmospheric Sciences Planetary Environmental and Astrobiological Research Laboratory Sun Yat‐sen University Zhuhai ChinaAbstract Patches of small smooth plains cover a substantial portion of the Mercurian surface, but their origin and relation to the global evolution are not completely understood. Here, we update the global inventory of small smooth plains on Mercury, classifying their spatial distribution, absolute model ages, and possible origins. We reveal that both large and small smooth plains on Mercury were dominantly emplaced within ∼200 million years around 3.7 Ga, and at least ∼24.9% of the global surface was resurfaced during this period. Small smooth plains formed by effusive volcanism are preferentially located around the contemporaneous Caloris, Rembrandt, and Beethoven basins and at thin crust areas. We also report small smooth plains that were likely emplaced by basin ejecta. Together with the distribution of similarly aged large smooth plains, our results reveal that peaked formation of large impact basins may be a major trigger for this short‐term and global‐wide volcanism.https://doi.org/10.1029/2021GL094503Mercuryvolcanismsmooth plainsmodel ageMESSENGER |
| spellingShingle | Yichen Wang Zhiyong Xiao Yiren Chang Rui Xu Jun Cui Short‐Term and Global‐Wide Effusive Volcanism on Mercury Around 3.7 Ga Geophysical Research Letters Mercury volcanism smooth plains model age MESSENGER |
| title | Short‐Term and Global‐Wide Effusive Volcanism on Mercury Around 3.7 Ga |
| title_full | Short‐Term and Global‐Wide Effusive Volcanism on Mercury Around 3.7 Ga |
| title_fullStr | Short‐Term and Global‐Wide Effusive Volcanism on Mercury Around 3.7 Ga |
| title_full_unstemmed | Short‐Term and Global‐Wide Effusive Volcanism on Mercury Around 3.7 Ga |
| title_short | Short‐Term and Global‐Wide Effusive Volcanism on Mercury Around 3.7 Ga |
| title_sort | short term and global wide effusive volcanism on mercury around 3 7 ga |
| topic | Mercury volcanism smooth plains model age MESSENGER |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1029/2021GL094503 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT yichenwang shorttermandglobalwideeffusivevolcanismonmercuryaround37ga AT zhiyongxiao shorttermandglobalwideeffusivevolcanismonmercuryaround37ga AT yirenchang shorttermandglobalwideeffusivevolcanismonmercuryaround37ga AT ruixu shorttermandglobalwideeffusivevolcanismonmercuryaround37ga AT juncui shorttermandglobalwideeffusivevolcanismonmercuryaround37ga |