Regional Mapping of MAVEN Orbital Magnetometer Data: Implications for the Nature of Crustal Field Sources and the Duration of the Mars Dynamo

L. L. Hood; T. Matlock; D. A. Crown; D. A. Williams; J. S. Oliveira; J. Halekas; B. Langlais; R. Lillis

doi:10.1029/2025JE009486

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Regional Mapping of MAVEN Orbital Magnetometer Data: Implications for the Nature of Crustal Field Sources and the Duration of the Mars Dynamo

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Regional Mapping of MAVEN Orbital Magnetometer Data: Implications for the Nature of Crustal Field Sources and the Duration of the Mars Dynamo

L. L. Hood, T. Matlock, D. A. Crown, D. A. Williams, J. S. Oliveira, J. Halekas, B. Langlais and R. Lillis

Journal of geophysical research. Planets, Vol.131(6), e2025JE009486

06/01/2026

DOI: 10.1029/2025JE009486

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Abstract

By implementing an alternate regional mapping approach that selects MAVEN orbit passes with periapses below 170 km within the region of interest and directly compares magnetometer data along adjacent tracks, more accurate regional maps of the Mars crustal magnetic field are constructed. Results for the Claritas Fossae region south of Tharsis show a more detailed correlation than previously found in Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) data between magnetic anomalies and areas of ancient magmatic activity and uplift. These anomaly sources are interpreted to consist of magmatic intrusions magnetized thermoremanently in an oxidizing, hydrothermal environment during early Mars history when the planetary dynamo was still active. Similarly, mapped anomalies near Olympus Mons are consistent with thermal demagnetization in the absence of a dynamo during the Late Hesperian and Amazonian epochs when its final eruptions occurred. Weak anomalies over the Syrtis Major calderas and the Tyrrhenus Mons caldera further support partial thermal demagnetization of the underlying older terrain. Hadriacus Mons has previously been reported to have a magnetization signature based on MGS electron reflectometry data. The regional mapping reported here confirms that anomalies extend southwestward from the Hadriacus Mons central caldera toward Hellas, following the direction of apparent pyroclastic flow deposits with model ages ranging from 3.7 to 3.9 Ga. If future lower-altitude measurements demonstrate that these anomalies are indeed associated with the asymmetric flanks of Hadriacus Mons, it would follow that dynamo activity continued into the Late Noachian or Early Hesperian epochs.

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Title: Subtitle: Regional Mapping of MAVEN Orbital Magnetometer Data: Implications for the Nature of Crustal Field Sources and the Duration of the Mars Dynamo
Creators: L. L. Hood - Planetary Science Institute
T. Matlock - Planetary Science Institute
D. A. Crown - Planetary Science Institute
D. A. Williams - Arizona State University
J. S. Oliveira - European Space Astronomy Centre
J. Halekas - University of Iowa
B. Langlais - Laboratoire de Planétologie et Géosciences
R. Lillis - University of California, Berkeley
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: Journal of geophysical research. Planets, Vol.131(6), e2025JE009486
DOI: 10.1029/2025JE009486
ISSN: 2169-9097
eISSN: 2169-9100
Publisher: Amer Geophysical Union
Number of pages: 22
Grant note: 80NSSC22K0135 / NASA Solar System Workings Program 80NSSC24K1123 / NASA Mars Data Analysis Program; National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA)
Language: English
Date published: 06/01/2026
Academic Unit: Physics and Astronomy
Record Identifier: 9985174494402771

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