UCLA

Evidence of wind-driven (aeolian) sediment transport has been observed on seven planetary bodies in our solar system to date. The movement of sediment across the surface of a planet can form depositional features, ranging from centimeter-scale ripples to vast and complex sand seas. Alternatively, this same transport process can cause erosion, carving complex structures out of bedrock over time. In some cases, aeolian features observed via remote sensing on other planets are not found on Earth, meaning our understanding of planetary processes is limited by the available analogs. The variety of atmospheric, sediment, and gravitational environments in which aeolian transport occurs indicates that though the conditions may vary, the fundamental physics involved is linked. Each of the research projects described here addresses an open question in a different area of planetary aeolian transport. The studies include two Mars-focused projects ((1) an analysis of dunes and ripples traversed by the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover and (2) a survey of bedrock ridges in Gale crater), a field guide to the Ibex Dunes of Death Valley National Park, and a wind-tunnel experiment where analog sediments were used to simulate planetary aeolian transport.