-
Recent Posts
Archives
Links
general
mission instruments
- CRISM: Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars
- CTX: Context Camera
- HiRISE: High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment
- MARSIS: Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionosphere Sounding
- SHARAD: Shallow Radar
- THEMIS: Thermal Emission Imaging System
missions
- All Mars missions list
- Curiosity rover
- ExoMars
- Hope (al-Amal) orbiter
- InSight
- Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution Mission (MAVEN)
- Mars Exploration Rovers (MER)
- Mars Express (MEX)
- Mars Odyssey
- Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) / Mangalyaan
- Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO)
- Mars Science Laboratory (MSL)
- Perseverance Rover
- Tianwen-1 orbiter/rover
news
Tag Archives: silica
Weathering on icy terrestrial volcanos may tell about weathering on Mars
[Editor’s note: From a paper by Alicia Rutledge and five co-authors recently published in Geophysical Research Letters]. Silica Dissolution and Precipitation in Glaciated Volcanic Environments and Implications for Mars • Chemical alteration of glaciated volcanic bedrock is dominated by silica … Continue reading
High-silica rock ‘halos’ widen timeframe for possible Mars life
Lighter-toned bedrock that surrounds fractures and comprises high concentrations of silica — called “halos”— has been found in Gale crater on Mars, indicating that the planet had liquid water much longer than previously believed. The new finding is reported in … Continue reading
Posted in Reports
Tagged Aeolis Mons, crater lakes, Curiosity, Gale Crater, Mars Science Laboratory, Mount Sharp, MSL, Murray Formation, NASA, silica, silica minerals
Comments Off
Silica-rich rocks at Marias Pass puzzle rover team
In detective stories, as the plot thickens, an unexpected clue often delivers more questions than answers. In this case, the scene is a mountain on Mars. The clue: the chemical compound silica. Lots of silica. The sleuths: a savvy band … Continue reading
Posted in Reports
Tagged Aeolis Mons, Curiosity, Gale Crater, Marias Pass, Mars Science Laboratory, Mount Sharp, MSL, Murray Formation, NASA, silica, Stimson Formation
Comments Off
Curiosity: High-silica rocks found at Marias Pass
Approaching the third anniversary of its landing on Mars, NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover has found a target unlike anything it has studied before — bedrock with surprisingly high levels of silica. Silica is a rock-forming compound containing silicon and oxygen, … Continue reading
Posted in Reports
Tagged Aeolis Mons, Apikuni Mountain, Curiosity, Elk, Gale Crater, Lamoose, Marias Pass, Mars Science Laboratory, Missoula, Mount Sharp, MSL, NASA, silica
Comments Off
HiRISE: Possible opaline silica in Elorza Crater
Elorza Crater is an approximately 40-kilometer diameter complex crater located at 304.8 degrees east, 8.76 degrees north, about 300 kilometers north of Coprates Chasma. This image centers on the southwestern portion of the central uplift, and is characterized by numerous … Continue reading
Posted in Reports
Tagged craters, Elorza Crater, High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment, HiRISE, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, MRO, NASA, opaline silica, silica, University of Arizona
Comments Off
Commemorating Mars Exploration Rover Spirit
The cast and crew of scientists and engineers who designed, built, and operated the Mars rover Spirit for its 2,210 days in Gusev Crater held a commemoration and celebration for the rover at its birthplace, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, on … Continue reading
Posted in Reports
Tagged Gusev Crater, Home Plate, hot springs, Mars Exploration Rovers, MER, silica, Spirit
Comments Off
Home Plate: Worth a second visit?
In Gusev Crater’s Columbia Hills, explored by the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit, a low plateau about 100 yards wide dubbed Home Plate has turned out to be a Pretty Big Deal. Although a deep bed of soft sand on its … Continue reading
Posted in Reports
Tagged geysers, Gusev Crater, Home Plate, hot springs, Mars Exploration Rovers, MER, silica, Spirit
Comments Off