Monthly Archives: March 2013

Dust drifts: new windblown feature on Mars?

Mars has ample loose material blowing around on its surface, a fact which has been known and studied for decades and more. However scientists have paid little attention to sedimentary deposits of dust.

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Icy jets erupt from north polar dunes in spring

Jets of gas erupting in the springtime from beneath slabs of carbon dioxide ice at the Martian south pole was a dramatic finding in 2006. It explained the mysterious “spiders” which came and went each year.

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Gale Crater’s Lake District

Mars rover Curiosity landed on, or just beyond, the far end of an alluvial fan — rocks, gravel, and sand washed down by the Peace River from the north rim of Gale Crater. The rover has driven for 200 sols … Continue reading

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Does Arabia show a new style of Martian volcanism?

Arabia is one of the largest and oldest regions of Mars. Among its varied rocks are widespread deposits of soft and easily eroded ones which may have a volcanic origin. However, Arabia has no obvious volcanic vents or sources.

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Developing a stratigraphic column for Gale Crater’s floor

After more than 100 sols (Martian days) in Gale Crater, NASA’s Curiosity rover has driven some 500 meters (1,600 feet), traversing several rock units. A sketch of the crater floor’s geological history is emerging. On its half-kilometer drive from its … Continue reading

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Subsurface radar profiles Marte Vallis outflow channel in 3D

Ground-penetrating radar on NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) reveals buried channels that show floods of water from Cerberus Fossae eroded Marte Vallis in two distinct stages, and they did so to a much greater extent than is visible today. The … Continue reading

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Megaflood carved a valley in a week

Morella Crater is an ancient impact scar 78 kilometers (49 miles) across that sits barely 5 km (3 mi) away from the southern edge of the large canyon, Ganges Chasma. Roughly 3 billion years ago,  groundwater filled Morella Crater with … Continue reading

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