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Nilosyrtis Mensae

Nilosyrtis Mensae is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Nilosyrtis Mensae rather than just read about it. In short: Nilosyrtis Mensae is an area of Mars in the Casius quadrangle. It is centered on the coordinates of 36.87° N and 67.9° E.

Nilosyrtis Mensae — main illustration
Nilosyrtis Mensae — illustration

Key takeaways

  • Nilosyrtis Mensae belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
  • Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
  • Connect Nilosyrtis Mensae to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
  • Reproduce the core statement of Nilosyrtis Mensae from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Nilosyrtis Mensae is an area of Mars in the Casius quadrangle. It is centered on the coordinates of 36.87° N and 67.9° E. Its western and eastern longitudes are 51.1° E and 74.4° E. North and south latitudes are 36.87° N and 29.61° N. Nilosyrtis Mensae is just to the east of Protonilus Mensae and both lie along the Martian dichotomy boundary. Its name was adapted by the IAU in 1973. It was named after a classical albedo feature, and it is 705 km (438 mi) across. The surface of Nilosyrtis Mensae is classified as fretted terrain. This terrain contains cliffs, mesas, and wide flat valleys. Surface features are believed to have been caused by debris-covered glaciers. These glaciers are termed lobate debris aprons when surrounding mounds and mesas. When the glaciers are in the valleys they are called lineated valley fill.

Climate change caused ice-rich features For decades many features on Mars, including ones in Nilosyrtis Mensae, were believed to contain large amounts of ice. This idea was confirmed by radar studies with the SHAllow RADar (SHARAD) on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. It showed that lobate debris aprons (LDA) and lineated valley fill (LVF) contain pure water ice covered with a thin layer of rocks that insulated the ice. Ice was found in many locations in the northern hemisphere, including Nilosyrtis Mensae. The most popular model for the origin of the ice is climate change from large changes in the tilt of the planet's rotational axis. At times the tilt has even been greater than 80 degrees Large changes in the tilt explains many ice-rich features on Mars. Studies have shown that when the tilt of Mars reaches 45 degrees from its current 25 degrees, ice is no longer stable at the poles. Furthermore, at this high tilt, stores of solid carbon dioxide (dry ice) sublimate, thereby increasing the atmospheric pressure. This increased pressure allows more dust to be held in the atmosphere. Moisture in the atmosphere will fall as snow or as ice frozen onto dust grains. Calculations suggest this material will concentrate in the mid-latitudes. General circulation models of the Martian atmosphere predict accumulations of ice-rich dust in the same areas where ice-rich features are found. When the tilt begins to return to lower values, the ice sublimates (turns directly to a gas) and leaves behind a lag of dust. The lag deposit caps the underlying material so with each cycle of high tilt levels, some ice-rich mantle remains behind. Note, that the smooth surface mantle layer probably represents only relatively recent material.

See also Deuteronilus Mensae Geology of Mars Glacier Ismenius Lacus quadrangle Martian dichotomy Protonilus Mensae

References

External links NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day: Mars in the New Year (6 January 2000) Media related to Nilosyrtis Mensae at Wikimedia Commons

Illustrations

Nilosyrtis Mensae illustration
Nilosyrtis Mensae: Inverted crater mesa, Nilosyrtis Mensae. This is thought to be an old impact crater that was eroded, filled in and then eroded again, so that now it is a low mesa surrounded by a bouldery slope. Image is about 900 m wide.
Inverted crater mesa, Nilosyrtis Mensae. This is thought to be an old impact crater that was eroded, filled in and then eroded again, so that now it is a low mesa surrounded by a bouldery slope. Image is about 900 m wide.
Nilosyrtis Mensae: Bedrock in Nilosyrtis Mensae. Image is about 1.5 km wide. In this enhanced-color image, the blue and green colors are generally due to mafic (magnesium and iron rich) minerals that are not altered by water, while the warmer colors are due to altered minerals like clays. The structure in this scene is complex, from impact and perhaps fluvial and volcanic processes, tectonic faulting, and erosion. This is an old terrain with a complex geologic history.[1]
Bedrock in Nilosyrtis Mensae. Image is about 1.5 km wide. In this enhanced-color image, the blue and green colors are generally due to mafic (magnesium and iron rich) minerals that are not altered by water, while the warmer colors are due to altered minerals like clays. The structure in this scene is complex, from impact and perhaps fluvial and volcanic processes, tectonic faulting, and erosion. This is an old terrain with a complex geologic history.[1]

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Nilosyrtis Mensae

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Nilosyrtis Mensae claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Nilosyrtis Mensae before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Nilosyrtis Mensae ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Nilosyrtis Mensae

In research
Nilosyrtis Mensae appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry
Engineering practice reuses Nilosyrtis Mensae in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom
Nilosyrtis Mensae is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Casius quadrangle, Mensae on Mars, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life
Look for Nilosyrtis Mensae outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.
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How to study Nilosyrtis Mensae in 20 minutes

  1. Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
  2. Close the page and write down what Nilosyrtis Mensae means in your own words.
  3. Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
  4. Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
  5. Explain Nilosyrtis Mensae out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Nilosyrtis Mensae in simple terms?

Nilosyrtis Mensae is an area of Mars in the Casius quadrangle. It is centered on the coordinates of 36.87° N and 67.9° E.

Why does Nilosyrtis Mensae matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Nilosyrtis Mensae?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Nilosyrtis Mensae.

Tags

  • Casius quadrangle
  • Mensae on Mars

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