# Oxia Planum

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Oxia_Planum
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Oxia_Planum.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxia_Planum
> Source revision: 1316177146
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

Plain on Mars

Oxia Planum Feature type Plains Location Oxia Palus quadrangle Coordinates 18°16′30″N 335°22′05″E / 18.275°N 335.368°E / 18.275; 335.368

**Oxia Planum** is a 200 km-wide clay-bearing [plain](/source/Plain) located on the planet of [Mars](/source/Mars) inside the [Oxia Palus quadrangle](/source/Oxia_Palus_quadrangle) on the eastern border of [Chryse Planitia](/source/Chryse_Planitia). The plain lies between the [Mawrth Vallis](/source/Mawrth_Vallis) [outflow channel](/source/Outflow_channels) to the north-east and the [Ares Vallis](/source/Ares_Vallis) [outflow channel](/source/Outflow_channels) to the south-west. In 2019, the [International Astronomical Union](/source/International_Astronomical_Union) Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature officially approved Oxia Planum as a feature on the surface of Mars (near 18.275°N 335.368°E).[1][2]

Oxia Planum was one of eight potential landing sites for the European Space Agency and Roscosmos ExoMars mission. After a five-year-long selection process, it was officially selected to be the landing site for [*Rosalind Franklin* (rover)](/source/Rosalind_Franklin_(rover)). It met the rover landing criteria based on its latitude, elevation,[3] surface slopes,[4] and its [Noachian](/source/Noachian)-aged terrains. It was chosen because of its relatively smooth topography and its abundance of hydrated minerals.[1][5][6]

## Overview

Oxia Planum contains one of the largest exposures of clay-bearing rocks on Mars.[7] The age of the region was calculated to be from ~3.6 billion years old[8] to ~4 billion years old.[1][7] The site is iron-magnesium rich [clays](/source/Clay), indicating that [water once played a role](/source/Water_on_Mars) here. The site sits in an area of valley systems with the exposed rocks exhibiting different compositions, indicating a variety of deposition and wetting environments. Dark resistant units, named for being dark-toned erosion resistant areas, are spread across the surface of the site. The formation of the dark resistant units is hypothesized to have occurred from either fluvial deposits or by volcanic activity during the [Amazonian](/source/Amazonian_(Mars)) period. The dark resistant units may have preserved the state of the older stratum beneath it.[1][9]

Clay accumulation underneath the remnants of a fan or delta near the outlet of Coogoon Vallis may offer preservation for [biosignatures](/source/Biosignature) against the planet's harsh radiation and oxidation environment.[7][10][11]

Oxia Planum - Location Map.

Oxia Planum - Geological Context - Morphology.

## Aeolian features

The [aeolian features](/source/Aeolian_landform) observed on Oxia Planum indicate a changing wind regime. The formation of [periodic bedrock ridges](/source/Periodic_Bedrock_Ridges) (PBRs) is hypothesized to have occurred by exposure from erosion or by wind. The PBRs record the oldest wind period of the region and indicate a north-northeast or south-southeast wind direction. The formation of [transverse aeolian ridges](/source/Transverse_aeolian_ridges) (TARs) occurred by wind. The TARs record a second wind period of the region and indicate a northwest or north-northwest to southeast or south-southeast wind direction. Dust devils and [windstreaks](/source/Windstreak) from the modern wind period indicate a west-northwest to east-southeast and occasionally a north-northeast to south-southwest wind direction.[5][9]

## See also

- [Geography of Mars](/source/Geography_of_Mars)

- [List of plains on Mars](/source/List_of_plains_on_Mars)

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:0_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:0_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:0_1-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-:0_1-3) Quantin-Nataf, Cathy; Carter, John; Mandon, Lucia; Thollot, Patrick; Balme, Matthew; Volat, Matthieu; Pan, Lu; Loizeau, Damien; Millot, Cédric; Breton, Sylvain; Dehouck, Erwin (January 5, 2021). ["Oxia Planum: The Landing Site for the ExoMars "Rosalind Franklin" Rover Mission: Geological Context and Prelanding Interpretation"](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7987365). *Astrobiology*. **21** (3): 345–366. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1089/ast.2019.2191](https://doi.org/10.1089%2Fast.2019.2191). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [1531-1074](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/1531-1074). [PMC](/source/PMC_(identifier)) [7987365](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7987365). [PMID](/source/PMID_(identifier)) [33400892](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33400892).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["ESA mission updates"](https://www.planetary.org/articles/11041714-esa-mission-updates). *The Planetary Society*. Retrieved May 1, 2021.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Mandon, Lucia; Parkes Bowen, Adam; Quantin-Nataf, Cathy; Bridges, John C.; Carter, John; Pan, Lu; Beck, Pierre; Dehouck, Erwin; Volat, Matthieu; Thomas, Nicolas; Cremonese, Gabriele (March 1, 2021). ["Morphological and Spectral Diversity of the Clay-Bearing Unit at the ExoMars Landing Site Oxia Planum"](https://hal.sorbonne-universite.fr/hal-03263480/document). *Astrobiology*. **21** (4): 464–480. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1089/ast.2020.2292](https://doi.org/10.1089%2Fast.2020.2292). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [1531-1074](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/1531-1074). [PMID](/source/PMID_(identifier)) [33646016](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33646016).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Turchinskaya, O. I.; Agapkin, I. A.; Dmitroskiy, A. A.; Slyuta, E. N. (March 2021). ["Analysis of the Terrain and Surface Slopes of the Potential Landing Area of the ExoMars Spacecraft Oxia Planum"](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2021LPI....52.2442T/abstract). *Lunar and Planetary Science Conference* (2548): 2442. [Bibcode](/source/Bibcode_(identifier)):[2021LPI....52.2442T](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2021LPI....52.2442T).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:1_5-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:1_5-1) Favaro, E. A.; Balme, M. R.; Davis, J. M.; Grindrod, P. M.; Fawdon, P.; Barrett, A. M.; Lewis, S. R. (2021). ["The Aeolian Environment of the Landing Site for the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin Rover in Oxia Planum, Mars"](https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/49977/1/49977.pdf) (PDF). *Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets*. **126** (4) 2020JE006723. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1029/2020JE006723](https://doi.org/10.1029%2F2020JE006723). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [2169-9100](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/2169-9100).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["Oxia Planum favoured for ExoMars surface mission"](http://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Human_and_Robotic_Exploration/Exploration/ExoMars/Oxia_Planum_favoured_for_ExoMars_surface_mission). *www.esa.int*. Retrieved May 1, 2021.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-clay_7-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-clay_7-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-clay_7-2) Durnham, R. (October 21, 2015). ["ExoMars 2018 rover heading for Oxia Planum"](http://redplanet.asu.edu/?p=15954). *Red Planet Report*. Retrieved October 22, 2015.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** Gary‐Bicas, C. E.; Rogers, A. D. (2021). ["Geologic and Thermal Characterization of Oxia Planum Using Mars Odyssey THEMIS Data"](https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/2020JE006678). *Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets*. **126** (2) e2020JE006678. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1029/2020JE006678](https://doi.org/10.1029%2F2020JE006678). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [2169-9100](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/2169-9100). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [234174370](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:234174370).

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:2_9-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:2_9-1) Silvestro, S.; Pacifici, A.; Salese, F.; Vaz, D. A.; Neesemann, A.; Tirsch, D.; Popa, C. I.; Pajola, M.; Franzese, G.; Mongelluzzo, G.; Ruggeri, A. C. (2021). ["Periodic Bedrock Ridges at the ExoMars 2022 Landing Site: Evidence for a Changing Wind Regime"](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7988568). *Geophysical Research Letters*. **48** (4) e2020GL091651. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1029/2020GL091651](https://doi.org/10.1029%2F2020GL091651). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [1944-8007](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/1944-8007). [PMC](/source/PMC_(identifier)) [7988568](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7988568). [PMID](/source/PMID_(identifier)) [33776161](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33776161).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-UdL-20140514_10-0)** Thollot, P.; Quantin, C. (May 14, 2014). ["Oxia Planum, landing site for Mars 2020"](https://marsnext.jpl.nasa.gov/workshops/2014_05/14_Oxia_Thollot_webpage.pdf) (PDF). *Universite de Lyon, France*. Retrieved October 22, 2015.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-UA-20141001_11-0)** Staff (October 1, 2014). ["Possible Future Mars Landing Site in Oxia Planum - *High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment*"](http://www.uahirise.org/ESP_037070_1985). *[The University of Arizona](/source/The_University_of_Arizona)*. Retrieved October 21, 2015.

## External links

- [Google Mars zoomable map – centered on the Oxia area](http://www.google.com/mars/#lat=-0.17578&lon=1.933591&q=Oxia)

- [High resolution images](http://www.uahirise.org/ESP_037070_1985) of the Oxia Planum

v t e ExoMars programme ExoMars 2016 Spacecraft Schiaparelli Trace Gas Orbiter Instruments ACS Electra FREND NOMAD 2028 launch Spacecraft Rosalind Franklin rover Kazachok (cancelled) Instruments ADRON-RM CLUPI HABIT ISEM LaRa MA-MISS MicrOmega-IR MOMA PanCam RLS WISDOM Related MAX-C rover Meridiani Planum Oxia Planum Category Commons

v t e Geography and geology of Mars Cartography Regions Abalos Undae Aspledon Undae Arabia Terra Cerberus Cydonia Eridania Lake Hyperboreae Undae Ogygis Undae Olympia Undae Planum Australe Planum Boreum Quadrangles Sinus Meridiani Siton Undae Tempe Terra Terra Cimmeria Terra Sabaea Tharsis Vastitas Borealis Quadrangles Aeolis Amazonis Amenthes Arabia Arcadia Argyre Casius Cebrenia Coprates Diacria Elysium Eridania Hellas Iapygia Ismenius Lacus Lunae Palus Mare Acidalium Mare Australe (South Pole) Mare Boreum (North Pole) Mare Tyrrhenum Margaritifer Sinus Memnonia Noachis Oxia Palus Phaethontis Phoenicis Lacus Sinus Sabaeus Syrtis Major Tharsis Thaumasia Geology Surface features Brain terrain Carbonates Chaos terrain Color Composition Concentric crater fill Dark slope streak Dichotomy Dune fields Hagal Nili Patera Fretted terrain Geysers Glaciers Groundwater Gullies Inverted relief Lakes Lava tubes Lineated valley fill (LVF) Lobate debris apron North Polar Basin Ocean hypothesis Ore resources Outflow channels Polar caps Ring mold craters Rootless cones Scalloped topography Seasonal flows Soil Spherules Surface Swiss cheese features Terrain softening Tholus Upper plains unit Valley networks Water discovery chronology Yardangs History Amazonian Hesperian Noachian Volcanology Observation history Canals (list) Classical albedo features Rocks observed Curiosity rover Bathurst Inlet Coronation Goulburn Hottah Jake Matijevic Link Rocknest Rocknest 3 Tintina Opportunity rover Bounce El Capitan Last Chance Sojourner rover Barnacle Bill Yogi Spirit rover Adirondack Home Plate Mimi Pot of Gold Viking Big Joe Other Face Monolith Meteorites found on Mars Block Island Heat Shield Mackinac Island Meridiani Planum Oileán Ruaidh Shelter Island Martian meteorites found on Earth Balsaltic Breccia Chassignites Nakhlites Shergottites Other List Topography Mountains, volcanoes (list by height) Acidalia Colles Alba Mons Anseris Mons Apollinaris Mons Ariadnes Colles Astapus Colles Ausonia Montes Avernus Colles Biblis Tholus Centauri Montes Charitum Montes Echus Montes Elysium Elysium Mons Albor Tholus Hecates Tholus Erebus Montes Galaxius Mons Hadriacus Mons Hellas Montes Jovis Tholus Libya Montes Mount Sharp Nereidum Montes Olympus Mons Phlegra Montes Syrtis Major Planum Tartarus Colles Tartarus Montes Tharsis Montes Ascraeus Pavonis Arsia Tharsis Tholus Tyrrhenus Mons Ulysses Tholus Uranius group Uranius Mons Ceraunius Tholus Uranius Tholus Plains, plateaus Acidalia Planitia Aeolis Palus Amazonis Planitia Arcadia Planitia Argentea Planum Argyre Planitia Chryse Planitia Daedalia Planum Elysium Planitia Eridania Planitia Hellas Planitia Hesperia Planum Icaria Planum Isidis Planitia Lunae Planum Meridiani Planum Oxia Planum Planum Australe Planum Boreum Syria Planum Syrtis Major Planum Utopia Planitia Eden Patera Orcus Patera Peneus Patera Pityusa Patera Siloe Patera Canyons, valleys Aram Chaos Arsia Chasmata Aromatum Chaos Atlantis Chaos Aureum Chaos Candor Chasma Chasma Boreale Coprates Chasma Echus Chasma Eos Chaos Eos Chasma Galaxias Chaos Ganges Chasma Gorgonum Chaos Hebes Chasma Hydaspis Chaos Hydraotes Chaos Iani Chaos Ister Chaos Ius Chasma Juventae Chasma Melas Chasma Ophir Chasma Tithonium Chasma List of valles Apsus Ares Arnus Asopus Athabasca Auqakuh Bahram Buvinda Dao Enipeus Frento Granicus Green Valley Harmakhis Hebrus Her Desher Hrad Huo Hsing Hypanis Iberus Indus Ituxi Kasei Labou Ladon Lethe Licus Louros Maʼadim Mad Maja Mamers Mangala Marineris Labes Marte Maumee Mawrth Minio Naktong Nanedi Niger Nirgal Padus Paraná Patapsco Peace Rahway Ravi Reull Sabis Sabrina Samara Scamander Shalbatana Simud Stura Tader Tinia Tinjar Tiu Tyras Uzboi ULM Vedra Verde Warrego Fossae, mensae, rupes, labyrinthi Amenthes Fossae Ceraunius Fossae Cerberus Fossae Coloe Fossae Cyane Fossae Elysium Fossae Hephaestus Fossae Icaria Fossae Labeatis Fossae Mangala Fossa Mareotis Fossae Medusae Fossae Memnonia Fossae Nili Fossae Olympica Fossae Oti Fossae Sirenum Fossae Tantalus Fossae Tempe Fossae Tithonium Fossae Tractus Fossae Ulysses Fossae Aeolis Mensae Ausonia Mensa Capri Mensa Cydonia Mensae Deuteronilus Mensae Ganges Mensa Nilosyrtis Mensae Protonilus Mensae Sacra Mensa Claritas Rupes Nilokeras Scopulus Olympus Rupes Rupes Tenuis Angustus Labyrinthus Noctis Labyrinthus Catenae, craters Artynia Catena Tithoniae Catenae Tractus Catena Adams Agassiz Airy Airy-0 Aniak Antoniadi Arandas Argo Arkhangelsky Arrhenius Asimov Bacolor Bakhuysen Baldet Baltisk Bamberg Barabashov Barnard Beagle Becquerel Beer Belz Bernard Bianchini Boeddicker Bok Bond Bonestell Bonneville Brashear Briault Burroughs Burton Campbell Canso Cassini Caxias Cerulli Chafe Chapais Chincoteague Chryse Alien Clark Coblentz Columbus Copernicus Corby Crewe Crivitz Crommelin Cruls Curie Da Vinci Danielson Darwin Davies Dawes Dejnev Denning Dilly Dinorwic Douglass Dromore Du Martheray Eagle (Acidalia Planitia) Eagle (Meridiani Planum) Eberswalde Eddie Ejriksson Emma Dean Endeavour Matijevic Hill Endurance Erebus Escalante Eudoxus Fenagh Fesenkov Firsoff Flammarion Flaugergues Focas Fontana Fournier Fram Freedom Galdakao Gale Galle Garni Gasa Gilbert Gill Gledhill Gold Graff Green Grindavik Gusev Apollo 1 Hills Chaffee Grissom White Columbia Hills Husband McCool Sleepy Hollow Hadley Haldane Hale Halley Hargraves Hartwig Heaviside Heimdal Heinlein Helmholtz Henry Herschel Hipparchus Holden Holmes Hooke Huggins Hussey Hutton Huxley Huygens Iazu Ibragimov Inuvik Janssen Jarry-Desloges Jeans Jezero Jezža Joly Jones Kaiser Keeler Kepler Kinkora Kipini Knobel Koga Korolev Kufra Kuiper Kunowsky Lambert Lamont Lampland Lassell Lau Le Verrier Li Fan Liais Lipik Liu Hsin Llanesco Lockyer Lod Lohse Lomonosov Louth Lowell Lyell Lyot Mädler Magelhaens Maggini Main Mandora Maraldi Mariner Marth Martz Masursky Maunder McLaughlin McMurdo Mellish Mendel Mie Milankovic Millochau Mitchel Miyamoto Mohawk Mojave Molesworth Montevallo Moreux Müller Nansen Nereus Newton Nhill Nicholson Niesten Nipigon Onon Orson Welles Oudemans Palana Pangboche Pasteur Penticton Perepelkin Peridier Persbo Pettit Phillips Pickering Playfair Pollack Poona Porter Porth Priestley Proctor Ptolemaeus Puńsk Quenisset Rabe Radau Rahe Rayleigh Redi Renaudot Reuyl Reynolds Richardson Ritchey Robert Sharp Roddenberry Ross Rossby Rudaux Russell Rutherford Sagan Saheki Santa Maria Schaeberle Schiaparelli Schmidt Secchi Semeykin Sharonov Sibu Sinton Sitka Sklodowska Slipher Smith South Spallanzani Srīpur Steno Stokes Stoney Suess Suzhi Tarsus Taytay Teisserenc de Bort Terby Thila Thira Tikhonravov Tikhov Timbuktu Tombaugh Tooting Trouvelot Troy Trud Trumpler Tugaske Tycho Brahe Tyndall Udzha Vernal Very Victoria Cape Verde Vinogradov Vinogradsky Virrat Vishniac Vogel Von Kármán Vostok Wallace Wegener Weinbaum Wells Williams Winslow Wirtz Wislicenus Wright Yuty Zumba Zunil

[Portals](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Contents/Portals):
- [Astronomy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Astronomy)
- [Biology](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Biology)
- [Solar System](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Solar_System)

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Oxia Planum](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxia_Planum) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxia_Planum?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.