Tag Archives: clay minerals

Curiosity: Looking into the Phyllosilicate Trough

Posted on January 30, 2018 by rburnham

Sol 1949, January 29, 2018. The rover’s Navcam shot a composite that looks down into the low-lying area behind Vera Rubin Ridge. This is known as the Clay Unit or the Phyllosilicate Trough because clay minerals have been detected there … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Clays of Ladon Basin

Posted on January 25, 2018 by rburnham

Ladon Basin was a large impact structure that was filled in by the deposits from Ladon Valles, a major ancient river on Mars. These wet sediments were altered into minerals such as various clay minerals. Clays imply chemistry that may … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Clay-rich deposits associated with a degraded crater

Posted on January 8, 2018 by rburnham

Clay-rich deposits associated with a degraded crater. Beautiful Mars series.

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Clays quickly cooked in early Mars steambath

Posted on December 7, 2017 by rburnham

New research suggests that the bulk of clay minerals on Mars could have been formed as the planet’s crust cooled and solidified, not by later interactions with water on the surface as has long been assumed. (…) There are thousands … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Prospecting from orbit

Posted on September 7, 2017 by rburnham

The combination of morphological and topographic information from stereo images, as well as compositional data from near-infrared spectroscopy has been proven to be a powerful tool for understanding the geology of Mars. Beginning with the OMEGA instrument on the European … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Crater with possible phyllosilicates

Posted on August 15, 2017 by rburnham

Crater with possible phyllosilicates in the Terra Cimmeria highlands. Beautiful Mars series.

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HiRISE: The Painted Desert near Mawrth Vallis

Posted on August 11, 2017 by rburnham

The clay-rich terrain surrounding Mawrth Vallis is one of the most scenic regions of Mars, a future interplanetary park. Here, we cut a long, oblique view into strips to see the full color coverage in more compact form. The origin … Continue reading →

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CRISM: Evidence of aqueous alteration near Mawrth Vallis

Posted on August 8, 2017 by rburnham

CRISM image 21BCB covers a region on the boundary of Chryse Planita, between Mawrth Vallis and Oyama crater. Chryse Planitia is a smooth circular 1600 km diameter plain that was a landing site for the U.S Viking 1 (landed July … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Clay deposits in the Southern Highlands

Posted on July 28, 2017 by rburnham

Clay deposits in the Southern Highlands. Beautiful Mars series.

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HiRISE: Dragon scales of Mars

Posted on July 12, 2017 by rburnham

This intriguing surface texture is the result of rock interacting with water. The rock was then eroded and later exposed to the surface. The pinkish, almost dragon-like scaled texture represents Martian bedrock that has specifically altered into a clay-bearing rock. … Continue reading →

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