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Outflow channels are extremely long, wide swathes of scoured ground on Mars, commonly containing the streamlined remnants of pre-existing topography and other linear erosive features indicating sculpting by fluids moving downslope.〔Carr, M.H. (2006), ''The Surface of Mars''. Cambridge Planetary Science Series, Cambridge University Press.〕 Channels extend many hundreds of kilometers in length and are typically greater than one kilometer in width; the largest valley (Kasei Vallis) is around long, greater than wide and exceeds in depth cut into the surrounding plains. These features tend to appear fully sized at fractures in the Martian surface, either from chaos terrains or from canyon systems or other tectonically controlled, deep graben, though there are exceptions. Besides their exceptional size, the channels are also characterized by low sinuosities and high width:depth ratios compared both to other Martian valley features and to terrestrial river channels. Crater counts indicate that most of the channels were cut since the early Hesperian,〔Hartmann, W.K., and Neukum, G. (2001). "Cratering chronology and the evolution of Mars". In: ''Chronology and Evolution of Mars'', ed. R. Kallenbach et al. Dordrecht: Kluwer, p. 165-94.〕 though the age of the features is variable between different regions of Mars. Some outflow channels in the Amazonis and Elysium Planitiae regions have yielded ages of only tens of million years, extremely young by the standards of Martian topographic features.〔Burr, D.M., McEwan, A.S., and Sakimoto, S.E. (2002). "Recent aqueous floods from the Cerberus Fossae", ''Mars. Geophys. Res. Lett.'', 29(1), 10.1029/2001G1013345.〕 On the basis of their geomorphology, locations and sources, the channels are today generally thought to have been carved by outburst floods (huge, rare, episodic floods of liquid water),〔Baker, V.R. (1982). ''The Channels of Mars''. Austin: Texas University Press.〕〔Carr,M.H. (1979). "Formation of Martian flood features by release of water from confined aquifers". ''J. Geophys. Res.'', 84, 2995-3007.〕 although some authors still make the case for formation by the action of glaciers,〔Luchitta, B.K. (2001). "Antarctic ice streams and outflow channels on Mars". ''Geophys. Res. Lett.'', 28, 403-6.〕 lava,〔Leverington, D.W. (2004). "Volcanic rilles, streamlined islands, and the origin of outflow channels on Mars", ''Geophys. Res.'', 109(E11), .〕 or debris flows.〔Tanaka, K.L. (1999). "Debris flow origin for the Simud/Tiu deposit on Mars". ''J. Geophys. Res.'', 104, 8637-52.〕〔Hoffman, N. (2000). White Mars. Icarus, 146, 326-42.〕 Calculations〔Williams, R.M., Phillips, R.J., and Malin, M.C. (2000). "Flow rates and duration within Kasei Vallis, Mars: Implications for the formation of a Martian ocean". ''Geophys. Res. Lett.'', 27, 1073-6.〕〔Robinson, M.S., and Takana, K.L. (1990), "Magnitude of a catastrophic flood event in Kasei Vallis, Mars". ''Geology'', 18, 902-5.〕 indicate that the volumes of water required to cut such channels at least equal and most likely exceed by several orders of magnitude the present discharges of the largest terrestrial rivers, and are probably comparable to the largest floods known to have ever occurred on Earth (e.g., those that cut the Channeled Scablands in North America or those released during the re-flooding of the Mediterranean basin at the end of the Messinian Salinity Crisis).〔Baker, V.R. (1982). ''The Channels of Mars''. Austin: Texas University Press.〕〔Garcia-Castellanos, D., et al., (2009). "Catastrophic flood of the Mediterranean after the Messinian Salinity Crisis". ''Nature'', 462, 778-782.〕 Such exceptional flow rates and the implied associated volumes of water released could not be sourced by precipitation but rather demand the release of water from some long-term store, probably a subsurface aquifer sealed by ice and subsequently breached by meteorite impact or igneous activity.〔Carr,M.H. (1979). "Formation of Martian flood features by release of water from confined aquifers". ''J. Geophys. Res.'', 84, 2995-3007.〕 The outflow channels contrast with the Martian channel features known as "valley networks", which much more closely resemble the dendritic planform more typical of terrestrial river drainage basins. Outflow channels tend to be named after the names for Mars in various ancient world languages, or more rarely for major terrestrial rivers.〔Carr, M.H. (2006), ''The Surface of Mars''. Cambridge Planetary Science Series, Cambridge University Press.〕 The term outflow channels was introduced in planetology in 1975.〔http://www.vanderbilt.edu/AnS/physics/astrocourses/AST101/readings/mars_water.html〕 ==List of outflow channels by region== This is a partial list of named channel structures on Mars claimed as outflow channels in the literature, largely following ''The Surface of Mars'' by Carr. The channels tend to cluster in certain regions on the Martian surface, often associated with volcanic provinces, and the list reflects this. Originating structures at the head of the channels, if clear and named, are noted in parentheses and in italics after each entry. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「outflow channels」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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