Slope streaks are prevalent and intriguing dark albedo surface features on contemporary Mars.Slope streaks are readily observed in the equatorial and subequatorial dusty regolith regions with lowthermal inertia. They gradually fade over decadal timescales. The proposed mechanisms for their formationvary widely based on several physicochemical and geomorphological explanations. The scientificcommunity is divided in proposing both dry and wet mechanisms for the formation of slope streaks. Here weperform a systematic evaluation of the literature for these wet and dry mechanisms. We discuss theprobable constraints on the various proposed mechanisms and provide perspectives on the plausible processdriving global‐scale slope streak formation on contemporary Mars. Although per our understanding, athorough consideration of the global distribution of slope streaks, their morphology and topography,flowcharacteristics, physicochemical and atmospheric coincidences, and terrestrial analogies weighs more infavor of several wet mechanisms, we acknowledge that such wet mechanisms cannot explain all the reportedmorphological and terrain variations of slope streaks. Thus, we suggest that explanations consideringboth dry and wet processes can more holistically describe all the observed morphological variations amongslope streaks. We further acknowledge the constraints on the resolutions of remote sensing data and on ourunderstanding of the Martian mineralogy, climate, and atmosphere and recommend continuousinvestigations in this direction using future remote sensing acquisitions and simulations. In this regard,finding more wet and dry terrestrial analogs for Martian slope streaks and studying them at highspatiotemporal resolutions can greatly improve our understanding.

The rise in temperature is already evident in Himalaya with rate of increase varying seasonally and spatially. Changes in precipitation are also evident with no clear trend. Several studies in different parts of Himalayas suggest that the glaciers are retreating in general with few exceptions as response to changes in temperature and precipitation. The stream flow in river basins in Indian Himalayan region (IHR) is already showing changes in studies undertaken in the last few decades. Use of glacio-hydrological models gives opportunity to estimate stream flow in glaciated river basins and understand the changes. The present study deals with estimation of discharge in Shaune Garang Basin, Himachal Pradesh using a glacio-hydrological model based on degree day factors. The model was used to estimate long term average of melt season discharge (1985-2007) in the basin. The modelled discharge shows good correlation with measured discharge for simulation period except for first year of comparison.

The observed and predicted rise in temperature will have deleterious impact on melting of snow and ice and form of precipitation which is already evident in Indian Himalayan Region. The temperature-dependent entities like discharge and sediment load will also vary with the observed and predicted rise posing environmental, social and economic threat in the region. There is little known about sediment load transport in relation to temperature and discharge in glacierized catchments in Himalaya mainly due to the scarcity of ground-based observation. The present study is an attempt to understand the suspended sediment load and transportation in relation to variation in discharge and temperature in the Shaune Garang catchment. The result shows strong dependence of sediment concentration primarily on discharge (R² = 0.84) and then on temperature (R² = 0.79). The catchments with similar geological and climate setting were observed to have comparatively close weathering rate. The sediment load was found to be higher in the catchments in eastern and central part of Indian Himalayan Region in comparison with western part due to dominance of Indian Summer Monsoon leading to high discharge. The annual physical weathering rate in Shaune Garang catchment was found to be 411 t km⁻² year⁻¹ which has increased from 327 t km⁻² year⁻¹ in around three decades due to rise in temperature causing increase in discharge and proportion of debris-covered glacierized area.

Studies of the seasonal and annual patterns of glacier velocities improve our understanding of the ice volume, topography, responses to climate change, and surge events of glaciers. Such studies are especially relevant and equally rare for the Himalayan glaciers, which supply many rivers that sustain some of the most heavily populated mountainous regions in the world. In particular, the control of the hypsometric distribution of geomorphometric parameters, such as slope, aspect, and curvature, on the dynamics of Himalayan glaciers have never been studied so far, at the river basin scale. Here, we present the degree to which topographic and hypsometric parameters affect the seasonal and annual average flow velocities of 112 glaciers in the Baspa River basin in the Western Indian Himalaya by analysing Global Land Ice Velocity Extraction from Landsat 8 (GoLIVE) datasets for the years 2013–2017. We observe, (i) significant heterogeneity in topographic controls on the velocities of these glaciers, (ii) elevation and the seasons play important roles in regulating the degree to which morphometric parameters (slope, aspect, and curvature) affect these velocities, (iii) a possible polythermal regime promoting both sliding and deformational forms of motion in a majority of these glaciers, and (iv) a detailed analysis of complex topographic controls within various elevation zones using a novel hypso-morphometric approach. These findings can help us to better model the dynamics of Himalayan glaciers and their responses to the future climatic scenarios. The inferences also suggest the need to incorporate dynamic topography in glacio-hydrological models in the wake of constant glacial evolutions.

The deep subsurface of other planetary bodies is of special interest for robotic and human exploration. The subsurface provides access to planetary interior processes, thus yielding insights into planetary formation and evolution. On Mars, the subsurface might harbour the most habitable conditions. In the context of human exploration, the subsurface can provide refugia for habitation from extreme surface conditions. We describe the fifth Mine Analogue Research (MINAR 5) programme at 1 km depth in the Boulby Mine, UK in collaboration with Spaceward Bound NASA and the Kalam Centre, India, to test instruments and methods for the robotic and human exploration of deep environments on the Moon and Mars. The geological context in Permian evaporites provides an analogue to evaporitic materials on other planetary bodies such as Mars. A wide range of sample acquisition instruments (NASA drills, Small Planetary Impulse Tool (SPLIT) robotic hammer, universal sampling bags), analytical instruments (Raman spectroscopy, Close-Up Imager, Minion DNA sequencing technology, methane stable isotope analysis, biomolecule and metabolic life detection instruments) and environmental monitoring equipment (passive air particle sampler, particle detectors and environmental monitoring equipment) was deployed in an integrated campaign. Investigations included studying the geochemical signatures of chloride and sulphate evaporitic minerals, testing methods for life detection and planetary protection around human-tended operations, and investigations on the radiation environment of the deep subsurface. The MINAR analogue activity occurs in an active mine, showing how the development of space exploration technology can be used to contribute to addressing immediate Earth-based challenges. During the campaign, in collaboration with European Space Agency (ESA), MINAR was used for astronaut familiarization with future exploration tools and techniques. The campaign was used to develop primary and secondary school and primary to secondary transition curriculum materials on-site during the campaign which was focused on a classroom extra vehicular activity simulation.