Analysis of a Thaumasia Planum rift through automatic mapping and strain characterization of normal faults

A new semi-automatic technique is presented to map and characterize tectonic features on Mars. Automatic strain estimation associated with normal faults is achieved for synthetic and real fault scarps on Mars. The application of this new technique to a small rift located in Thaumasia Planum allowed the segmentation of the rift. The defined segmentation corresponds to changes in the strikes of faults that delimitate rift areas with different architecture. The rift is formed by several pull-apart basins developed due to the reactivation of previously formed tectonic structures. The strain spatial distribution and the overall geometry are consistent with a roughly East-West left-lateral shear transfer zone between two different lithospheric blocks. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.