Europa's Northern Trailing Hemisphere: Lineament Stratigraphic Framework

Knowledge of the global distribution of Europan geologic units in time and space is a necessary step for the synthesis of the results of the Galileo mission and in preparation for future exploration (namely, by JIMO) of the satellite. We have initiated the production of the first Global Geological Map of Europa. As a base map, we use the recently published global photomosaic of Europa (U.S.G.S. Map I-2757) and additional Galileo SSI images at their original resolution. The map is being produced entirely on GIS format for analysis and combination with other datasets [1]. One of the main objectives of this project is to establish a global stratigraphic framework for Europa. In the absence of a well-developed cratering record, this goal will be achieved using the satellite s global network of lineaments (ridges, ridge complexes and bands; cf. [2]). Here we present the preliminary stratigraphic framework synthesized from the sequence of lineaments derived for the northern trailing hemisphere of Europa (Figure 1, below), and we discuss its significance and some emerging implications.