Paleo‐Evolution of Martian Subsurface Ice and Its Role in the Polar Physical and Isotopic Layering

Abstract

AbstractMars harbors ice deposits in several forms, on the surface and in the subsurface, which exchange with each other on various timescales. We seek to study the pore ice evolution over millennial time scales and how it contributes to and affects the Polar cap's evolution. We calculate the evolution of SubSurface Ice (SSI) pore filling by coupling two models, the Mars LMD Global Climate Model, which calculates the atmospheric and surface evolution on an annual timescale, and the dynamical version of the Mars Subsurface Ice Model, which calculates the evolution of the SSI on a millennial timescale. The SSI latitudinal boundary fluctuates over more than 25° in one obliquity cycle, overall extending equatorward of latitude ±35° at high obliquity, and receding to about ±60° at low obliquity. In locations where the SSI is stable continuously over orbital cycles, the simulations predict layering caused by a sublimation front at the SSI top boundary. Between 5 and 2.5 Myr ago, the subsurface lost at least ∼95 m of polar equivalent layer ice. The SSI flux routinely reaches ∼1 mm/Mars year. In addition to the direct contribution to the growth of the North Polar Layered Deposits (NPLD), the SSI causes variations in the NPLD accumulation rate due to the changes in the SSI distribution that affect the seasonal energy budget. These variations are comparable to the change in rate due to variations in orbital elements. When running paleo‐climate simulations, particularly to reconstruct the NPLD profile, changes in the SSI distribution should be considered.