Landslide Morphology and Mobility on Ceres Controlled by Topography

Abstract

AbstractCeres has an abundance of long runout landslides with more slides near the poles. Here we simulate these landslides using a discrete element model. Our simulations indicate that long runout landslides on Ceres do not require the presence of fluid or slippery ice to explain their mobility. We find that lower fall heights and larger volumes lead to increased slide mobility while the relatively low surface gravity of Ceres, compared to the Earth and Mars, reduces slide mobility and affects slide morphology. We show that latitudinal trends in number of slides and slide morphology are more consistent with trends in topography than expected trends in near‐surface ice content. These morphological trends with topography are also consistent with the results of our landslide simulations. We argue that landslide morphology cannot be used to draw conclusions about local ice content and composition. However, the higher abundance of long runout landslides on Ceres relative to Vesta may be related to its higher global ice content or greater endogenic activity.