Tag Archives: clay minerals

Opportunity: Seeking clay minerals

Sols 4335-6, April 4-5, 2016. After driving back closer to the head of Marathon Valley, where slopes are not as steep, Opportunity’s Pancam has shot a series of filtered images to identify likely outcrop targets to examine closely. The warm-tinted … Continue reading

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Opportunity field report, April 1, 2016

Sol 4333, April 1, 2016; Rover Field Report by Larry Crumpler, MER Science Team & New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science: On this sol here on the west rim of Endeavour crater Opportunity has climbed west and up Marathon … Continue reading

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Opportunity: Moving higher for firmer ground & clay minerals

Sol 4323, March 23, 2016. Opportunity is exploring Marathon Valley because orbital spectrometry found exposures of water-altered clay minerals in the valley. But with the ground proving too loose to allow Opportunity to reach its intended outcrop target at Pvt. … Continue reading

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More recent clay formation on Mars?

Clays and other minerals formed when rocks are altered by water have been found in multiple locations on Mars. It’s been assumed that these minerals probably formed in the earliest Martian epoch, over 3.7 billion years ago. But a new … Continue reading

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Opportunity: Searching for water-altered rocks

Sol 4165, October 12, 2015. More scouting the outcrops on the Marathon Valley floor. The rocks of greatest interest are those that have a faint reddish tinge in false-color Pancam images (such as these by Holger Isenberg). These are believed … Continue reading

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Opportunity: Tracing patterns on the floor

Sol 4159, October 6, 2015. As Opporutnity’s Navcam shot a composite image (above) looking southeast across Endeavour Crater, the Pancam shot a mosaic (below) covering some of the enigmatic patterns in the rock outcrops on the floor of Marathon Valley. … Continue reading

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Opportunity: Pvt. Robert Frazer in false color

Sol 4148, September 25, 2015. The rover’s Pancam took a sequence of filtered frames on the target dubbed Pvt. Robert Frazer. Previously, this target was brushed, then drilled by the Rock Abrasion Tool (RAT), which removed the top surface of … Continue reading

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Opportunity: Looking for phyllosilicates

Sol 4140, September 17, 2015. Mission scientists are scanning the floor of Marathon Valley with the Pancam, looking for exposures of the “reddish banded” rock which has exposures in the valley and up on the rim. This unit may be … Continue reading

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Opportunity: Checking out Pvt. George Gibson

Sol 4139, September 15, 2015. Opportunity is examining the target dubbed Pvt. George Gibson, seen above in a pair of Navcam frames. At right is a false-color Pancam image of the target area (by Holger Isenberg). (Click images to enlarge.) … Continue reading

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HiRISE: Crater north of Hellas, with clay minerals?

I keep a silent vigil. A crater to the north of Hellas Planitia with possible phyllosilicates in the ejecta. Beautiful Mars series.

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