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Comparative analysis of the morphodynamics of talus slopes on Earth and Mars Cover

Comparative analysis of the morphodynamics of talus slopes on Earth and Mars

Miscellanea Geographica
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By: Kacper Kreczmer,  Maciej Dąbski and  Anita Zambrowska  
Open Access
|Jan 2026

Figures & Tables

Figure 1.

Location of selected talus slopes on Earth (A) and Mars (B), with marked transects (white and black lines on lower insets) on King George Island (C), Lanzarote (D), Terra Sabaea crater (E) and Dacono crater (F)Sources: World Relief Map (A); Mars HRSC-MOLA Colorized Shaded Relief (B); orthophoto, courtesy of Zmarz A. (C); Infraestructura de Datos Especiales (D); NASA/JPL/University of Arizona (E, F); edited in ArcMap 10.7.1
Location of selected talus slopes on Earth (A) and Mars (B), with marked transects (white and black lines on lower insets) on King George Island (C), Lanzarote (D), Terra Sabaea crater (E) and Dacono crater (F)Sources: World Relief Map (A); Mars HRSC-MOLA Colorized Shaded Relief (B); orthophoto, courtesy of Zmarz A. (C); Infraestructura de Datos Especiales (D); NASA/JPL/University of Arizona (E, F); edited in ArcMap 10.7.1

Figure 2.

Example transects on King George Island with marked bouldersSource: orthophoto, courtesy of Zmarz A.; edited in ArcMap 10.7.1
Example transects on King George Island with marked bouldersSource: orthophoto, courtesy of Zmarz A.; edited in ArcMap 10.7.1

Figure 3.

An example of the difference (angle α) between the orientation of a given transect and the longer axis of boulders along this transectSource: orthophoto, courtesy of Zmarz A.; edited in ArcMap 10.7.1
An example of the difference (angle α) between the orientation of a given transect and the longer axis of boulders along this transectSource: orthophoto, courtesy of Zmarz A.; edited in ArcMap 10.7.1

Figure 4.

An example of the reconstructed boulder's migration trajectories in the Terra Sabaea craterSource: own study based on NASA/JPL/University of Arizona; HiRISE images: ESP_025055_1615_RED, ESP_032835_1615_RED
An example of the reconstructed boulder's migration trajectories in the Terra Sabaea craterSource: own study based on NASA/JPL/University of Arizona; HiRISE images: ESP_025055_1615_RED, ESP_032835_1615_RED

Figure 5.

The marked boulder with the trace it left during transport – example from the Terra Sabaea craterSource: own study based on NASA/JPL/University of Arizona; HiRISE image ESP_025055_1615_RED
The marked boulder with the trace it left during transport – example from the Terra Sabaea craterSource: own study based on NASA/JPL/University of Arizona; HiRISE image ESP_025055_1615_RED

Figure 6.

Position of the longest axes (acute angles) of studied boulders versus directions of the transects on Earth and MarsSource: own study
Position of the longest axes (acute angles) of studied boulders versus directions of the transects on Earth and MarsSource: own study

Figure 7.

The number of marked boulders along the transects in intervals of 10% of the transect length on the analysed talus slopesSource: own study
The number of marked boulders along the transects in intervals of 10% of the transect length on the analysed talus slopesSource: own study

Figure 8.

The bottom edge of the slope and visible boulders at the flattening at the end of the slope in the Terra Sabaea craterSource: own study based on NASA/JPL/University of Arizona; HiRISE image ESP_025055_1615_RED
The bottom edge of the slope and visible boulders at the flattening at the end of the slope in the Terra Sabaea craterSource: own study based on NASA/JPL/University of Arizona; HiRISE image ESP_025055_1615_RED

Figure 9.

Talus slope in the Terra Sabaea crater: A – trace of a boulder in the upper part of the slope; B – trace of the same boulder in the lower part of the slopeSource: own study based on NASA/JPL/University of Arizona; HiRISE image ESP_025055_1615_RED
Talus slope in the Terra Sabaea crater: A – trace of a boulder in the upper part of the slope; B – trace of the same boulder in the lower part of the slopeSource: own study based on NASA/JPL/University of Arizona; HiRISE image ESP_025055_1615_RED

Figure 10.

Dunes with visible boulders at the foot of the slope in the Terra Sabaea craterSource: own study based on NASA/JPL/University of Arizona; HiRISE image ESP_025055_1615_RED
Dunes with visible boulders at the foot of the slope in the Terra Sabaea craterSource: own study based on NASA/JPL/University of Arizona; HiRISE image ESP_025055_1615_RED

Source of remote sensing images used in this work

Image signatureDate image was takenResolution [m]Study area
PSP_007966_1615_RED08.04.20080.50Terra Sabaea
ESP_024198_1615_RED25.09.20110.25Terra Sabaea
ESP_025055_1615_RED30.11.20110.50Terra Sabaea
ESP_025754_1615_RED24.01.20120.25Terra Sabaea
ESP_031200_1615_RED23.03.20130.25Terra Sabaea
ESP_031767_1615_RED06.05.20130.25Terra Sabaea
ESP_032334_1615_RED19.06.20130.50Terra Sabaea
ESP_032835_1615_RED29.07.20130.50Terra Sabaea
ESP_059248_1615_RED18.03.20190.25Terra Sabaea
ESP_026425_1500_RED16.03.20120.50Dacono crater
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/mgrsd-2025-0032 | Journal eISSN: 2084-6118 | Journal ISSN: 0867-6046
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Language: English
Submitted on: Jan 29, 2025
|
Accepted on: Jun 17, 2025
|
Published on: Jan 9, 2026
Published by: Faculty of Geography and Regional Studies, University of Warsaw
In partnership with: Paradigm Publishing Services
Publication frequency: 4 issues per year
Keywords:
Mars surface,
Earth surface,
geological processes,
geomorphology,
regolith,
image processing
Related subjects:
Geosciences,
Geography,
Geosciences, other

© 2026 Kacper Kreczmer, Maciej Dąbski, Anita Zambrowska, published by Faculty of Geography and Regional Studies, University of Warsaw
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

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