Lange, Manfred A. and Ahrens, Thomas J. (1987) Impact experiments in low-temperature ice. Icarus, 69 (3). pp. 506-518. ISSN 0019-1035. doi:10.1016/0019-1035(87)90020-0. https://resolver.caltech.edu/CaltechAUTHORS:20141029-115544788
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Abstract
New results of low-velocity impact experiments in cubic and cylindrical (20 cm) water-ice targets initially at 257 and 81 °K are reported. Impact velocities and impact energies vary between 0.1 and 0.64 km/sec and 10^9 and 10^(10) ergs, respectively. Observed crater diameters range from 7 to 15 cm and are two to three times larger than values found for equal-energy impacts in basaltic targets. Crater dimensions in ice targets increase slightly with increasing target temperatures. Crater volumes of strength-controlled ice craters are about 10 to 100 times larger than those observed for craters in crystalline rocks. Based on similarity analysis, general scaling laws for strength-controlled crater formation are derived and are applied to crater formation on the icy Galilean and Saturnian satellites. This analysis indicates that surface ages, based on impact-crater statistics on an icy crust, will appear greater than those for a silicate crust which experienced the same impact history. The greater ejecta volume for cratering in ice versus cratering in silicate targets leads to accelerated regolith production on an icy planet.
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Additional Information: | © 1987 Academic Press, Inc. Received September 3, 1985; Revised October 15, 1986. We appreciate the assistance of M. Long, E. Gelle, and C. Manning with the experiments. We appreciate both the advice and generous use of the cold-room facility proffered by B. Kamb. The prepublication results provided by K. Holsapple and K. Housen were helpful. M. A. Lange was partly supported by a stipend of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft. We appreciate helpful comments of S. Croft and K. Holsapple on this paper, which was supported under NASA Contract, NGL 105-002-105, Contribution No. 4268, Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology. | |||||||||
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Issue or Number: | 3 | |||||||||
DOI: | 10.1016/0019-1035(87)90020-0 | |||||||||
Record Number: | CaltechAUTHORS:20141029-115544788 | |||||||||
Persistent URL: | https://resolver.caltech.edu/CaltechAUTHORS:20141029-115544788 | |||||||||
Official Citation: | Lange, M. A., & Ahrens, T. J. (1987). Impact experiments in low-temperature ice. Icarus, 69(3), 506-518. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0019-1035(87)90020-0 | |||||||||
Usage Policy: | No commercial reproduction, distribution, display or performance rights in this work are provided. | |||||||||
ID Code: | 51005 | |||||||||
Collection: | CaltechAUTHORS | |||||||||
Deposited By: | INVALID USER | |||||||||
Deposited On: | 29 Oct 2014 19:21 | |||||||||
Last Modified: | 10 Nov 2021 19:04 |
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