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Stratigraphic reconstruction and analysis of the delta remnant Kodiak in Jezero Crater, Mars
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  • Christian D Tate,
  • Alexander G. Hayes,
  • Oak Kanine,
  • Sanjeev Gupta,
  • Gwénaël Caravaca,
  • Gerhard Paar,
  • Stephane Le Mouelic,
  • Christoph Traxler,
  • James Rice
Christian D Tate
Cornell University

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Alexander G. Hayes
Cornell University
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Oak Kanine
California Institute of Technology
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Sanjeev Gupta
Imperial College
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Gwénaël Caravaca
UMR 5277 CNRS, UPS, CNES Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et Planétologie
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Gerhard Paar
JOANNEUM RESEARCH
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Stephane Le Mouelic
LPGN
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Christoph Traxler
VRVis Zentrum für Virtual Reality und Visualisierung Forschungs-GmbH
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James Rice
Arizona State University
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Abstract

We analyze Kodiak, an eroded delta remnant in Jezero Crater, Mars, using several hundred images from the Mastcam-Z and SuperCam instruments on the Mars 2020 Perseverance Rover. We create a high-accuracy digital terrain model to measure Kodiak’s stratigraphic layers, which we divide into three units and characterize individually. While each unit possesses geometries interpreted as consistent with a Gilbert-style delta formation, the older units exposed on Kodiak’s north to northeast sides include more complex layered structures with azimuthally varying foresets. We compare Kodiak’s northeast foresets with the clinoforms of Whale Mountain, an outcrop exposed in the Western Jezero Delta scarp, and show similar azimuthally varying foresets. The stratigraphic analysis presented herein (strike and dip, unit thickness, etc.) will help test and refine detailed sedimentological hypotheses for the formation and evolution of the Jezero delta. Our 3D reconstruction and measurements enable unprecedented precision to evaluate depositional models and advance geological interpretation.
31 Jan 2024Submitted to ESS Open Archive
02 Feb 2024Published in ESS Open Archive