Tag Archives: Spirit

HiRISE: Possible jarosite on a plateau in Nili Fossae

Posted on July 31, 2019 by rburnham

Possible jarosite on a plateau in Nili Fossae. Recent analyses of CRISM data have discovered jarosite in this portion of the trough wall, possibly within a previously identified aluminum clay unit. Jarosite is a sulfate mineral also detected by the … Continue reading →

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Mars Express: Rover craters

Posted on September 22, 2017 by rburnham

In the week of 18 September 2017, the low-resolution webcam on ESA’s Mars Express captured some impressive images from between 3000 km to 5000 km altitude. The image series is being used to calibrate the camera now that it has … Continue reading →

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THEMIS: Gusev Crater

Posted on October 7, 2016 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, October 7, 2016. Today’s VIS image shows the part of the floor of Gusev Crater with the Columbia Hills. Numerous dark linear markings were created by dust devil action. The Columbia Hills are where the … Continue reading →

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Acid fog alteration seen at Husband Hill outcrop

Posted on November 3, 2015 by rburnham

While Mars doesn’t have much in the way of Earth-like weather, it does evidently share one kind of weird meteorology: acid fog. Planetary scientist Shoshanna Cole has pieced together a compelling story about how acidic vapors may have eaten at … Continue reading →

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THEMIS: Gusev Crater false color

Posted on January 19, 2015 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, January 19, 2015. The THEMIS VIS camera contains 5 filters. The data from different filters can be combined in multiple ways to create a false color image. These false color images may reveal subtle variations … Continue reading →

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THEMIS: Ma’adim Vallis

Posted on September 8, 2014 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, September 8, 2014. This VIS image shows a portion of Ma’adim Vallis, which is a large channel that enters Gusev Crater from the south. Gusev Crater is the “home” of the MER rover named Spirit. … Continue reading →

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“Lake Gusev” possible source for Comanche carbonates

Posted on March 14, 2014 by rburnham

The rock outcrop dubbed Comanche in the Columbia Hills of Gusev Crater is unusually rich in magnesium-iron carbonate minerals. This discovery was first announced in 2010 using data from the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit. At the time, scientists thought that … Continue reading →

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Lava flows resurfaced crater lakes after water was gone

Posted on January 1, 2013 by rburnham

Fire and water didn’t mix when it came to resurfacing basins that lie along Martian fluvial valley networks. A study of some 30 open-basin lakes (paleolakes) with floors covered by lava flows has concluded that at least these basins were … Continue reading →

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Not-so-everlasting hills

Posted on December 14, 2012 by rburnham

When the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit reached the top of Husband Hill in the Columbia Hills of Gusev Crater on August 22, 2005, it stood 107 meters (351 feet) above its landing site. Yet if recent work is right, the … Continue reading →

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Home Plate’s volcanic bomb landed with a splat

Posted on January 11, 2012 by rburnham

One of the unusual features that Mars Exploration Rover Spirit discovered at Home Plate, a former hydrothermal vent in the Columbia Hills, was a “bomb sag,” complete with its partially embedded volcanic bomb. To geologists, volcanic bombs are rocks or … Continue reading →

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