Abstract
Morphological observations of scoria cones on Mars show that their cross-sectional shapes are different from those on Earth. Due to lower gravity and atmospheric pressure on Mars, particles are spread over a larger area than on Earth.
Hence, erupted volumes are typically not large enough for the flank slopes to attain the angle of repose, in contrast to Earth where this is common. The distribution of ejected material forming scoria cones on Mars, therefore, is ruled mainly by ballistic distribution and not by redistribution of flank material by avalanching after the static angle of repose is reached.
As a consequence, the flank slopes of the Martian scoria cones do not reach the critical angle of repose in spite of a large volume of ejected material. Therefore, the topography of scoria cones on Mars is governed mainly by ballistic distribution of ejected particles and is not influenced by redistribution of flank material by avalanching.
The growth of a scoria cone can be studied numerically by tracking the ballistic trajectories and tracing the cumulative deposition of repeatedly ejected particles. We apply this approach to a specific volcanic field, Ulysses Colles on Mars, and compare our numerical results with observations.