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Chaotic Terrain (Europa)

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  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Planetary Landforms

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Definition

Surface regions on Europa where the original ice crust is fragmented and low level matrix material between these rafts formed by thinning and possibly melting.

Synonyms

Chaos terrain, also known as lenticulae; Macula; Micro-chaos; Mottled terrain; “Pits, spots, and domes”

Description

Chaotic terrain on Europa is composed of regions of fragments of the preexisting ice crust, such as ridged plains, separated by a low-level chaotic, hummocky matrix material. The shape of the individual fragments varies from smoothly circular to polygonal blocks of ridged terrain (Mikell and Cox 2008; Doggett et al. 2009). The matrix material can be either low lying or high standing relative to the surrounding plains (Collins et al. 2000; Greeley et al. 2000). Chaoses and lenticulae can be elevated by 100–200 m above their surroundings (Figueredo et al. 2002; Schenk and Pappalardo 2004). Some of the individual plates sometimes appear to have moved from their original position, and some of them...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Planetary Geology, German Aerospace Center, Institute of Planetary Research, Rutherfordstrasse 2, 12489, Berlin, Germany

    Katrin Stephan

  2. Konkoly Thege Miklos Astronomical Institute, Research Center for Astronomy and Earth Sciences, Budapest, Hungary

    Ákos Kereszturi

Authors
  1. Katrin Stephan
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  2. Ákos Kereszturi
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Correspondence to Katrin Stephan .

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Stephan, K., Kereszturi, Á. (2014). Chaotic Terrain (Europa). In: Encyclopedia of Planetary Landforms. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-9213-9_45-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-9213-9_45-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-9213-9

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