Sand dunes on mars and on earth

Abstract

In this work the dune model introduced by Sauermann et al. (2001) is extended and applied to investigate the formation of different dune shapes on Mars and on Earth as function of wind directionality and sand availability. The formation of sand dunes on Mars under the present atmospheric conditions of the red planet is studied and conclusions about wind speed, migration velocity of dunes and changing wind regimes on Mars are presented. Field measurements of the shape of coastal transverse dunes are presented and the formation of coastal dune fields is explained. Finally, the formation of linear dunes by bimodal wind regimes is calculated. The simulations explain the appearance of exotic bimodal dune shapes in areas of low sand availability on Mars and on Earth.