Tectonic Processes on Mercury and Venus: Snapshots from the Innermost Solar System

Many planetary bodies in our Solar System show a rich history in tectonism. Mercury and Venus, the two innermost planets, are no exception. In this talk, I will present some aspects of the tectonics on these two planets that highlight the diversity of tectonic processes found in our Solar System. In Part I, the presentation will highlight Mercury’s global structural record. Mercury shows myriads of tectonic lineaments related to faulting and impact cratering, which, together, are useful for testing predictions of tectonic patterns. One such prediction is that structures were introduced to the planet by the impact forming the Caloris basin, Mercury’s largest well-preserved impact structure. I will present results on the search for an impact damage zone associated with the Caloris basin. Part II of the presentation will focus on one aspect of Venus’ complex tectonic history. Venus is host to a global population of lava channels, so-called canali, that are up to thousands of kilometers long. Interestingly, these channels show irregular topography that is indicative of short-, and long-wavelength topographic changes. In this presentation, I will show some areas that experienced short-wavelength topographic changes resembling uplift of mountain ranges on Earth.