Andrew Ryan says in the 'Science' journal that such coiling spiral patterns of lava flows that resemble snail or nautilus shells have been found in a few locations on Earth, but never before on Mars.
"I was interested in Martian outflow channels and was particularly intrigued by Athabasca Valles and Cerberus Palus, both part of Elysium. Athabasca Valles has a very interesting history," Ryan said.
He added: "There's an extensive literature on the area, as well as an intriguing combination of seemingly fluvial and volcanic features."
Among the features are large slabs or plates that resemble broken floes of pack ice in the Arctic Ocean on Earth. In the past, a few scientists have argued that the plates in Elysium are in fact underlain by water ice.
Assessing those claims that ice was present today beneath the lava plates drove Ryan to study the area. "I examined probably 100 HiRISE images of the area," Ryan said, referring to the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.
He added: "The coils become noticeable in the full-resolution HiRISE image only when you really zoom in. They also tend to blend in with the rest of the light-gray terrain -- that is, until you stretch the contrast a bit." (MORE) PTI MOT