Exposure of an Early to Middle Noachian valley network in three dimensions on Mars

Abstract

We document a set of channels in a section of the Martian cratered highlands located between crustal massifs northeast of Hellas Planitia that are visible in cross section and planview >200 m below the surface. The morphometry and spatial distribution of the outcrops provide concrete geological evidence of a dynamic aqueous system in a structural sub-basin during the Early to Middle Noachian, bolstering evidence of conditions compatible with sustained liquid water on the surface very early in Mars' history.