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Tag Archives: water
When did water flow in Gale Crater?
The Mars Science Laboratory rover Curiosity, sent to find habitable environments, landed in Gale Crater on the far end of an alluvial fan. This fan spreads south across Gale’s floor from the north rim. It is built from sediments washed … Continue reading
Posted in Reports
Tagged Aeolis Mons, alluvial fans, channels, cratering rate, craters, Curiosity, Gale Crater, Mars Science Laboratory, Mount Sharp, MSL, Peace Vallis, water
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CRISM image: high-calcium pyroxene in Bosporus Planum
The two featured images here show iron/magnesium-rich minerals in the Bosporus Planum region of Mars. The Martian crust is made mostly of igneous rock containing the minerals olivine and pyroxene. Pyroxene is the dominant silicate mineral in most igneous rocks … Continue reading
Posted in Reports
Tagged Bosporus Planum, Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars, CRISM, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, MRO, water
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Recurring slope lineae discovered deep in Valles Marineris
Discovered in 2011, recurring slope lineae (RSL for short) are narrow, dark lines on steep slopes. They appear and grow longer during the warmest time of year, then fade and disappear over winter. They recur in the same places the … Continue reading
Posted in Reports
Tagged brine seeps, brines, brines, CRISM, ground ice, groundwater, HiRISE, ice, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, recurring slope lineae, RSL, Valles Marineris, water
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Hematite ridge: site for Curiosity rover to explore ancient habitability?
A low ridge running along the foot of Mt. Sharp will likely become a prime target for Curiosity, the Mars Science Laboratory rover as it approaches the mound. The reason, outlined in a recent paper in Geology by Abigail Fraeman … Continue reading
Posted in Reports
Tagged CRISM, Curiosity, Gale Crater, habitability, hematite, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, Mars Science Laboratory, water
2 Comments
Spiral troughs in Mars polar caps are born in ‘cyclic steps’
Both Martian polar caps have deep spiral troughs that slice into them for dozens or hundreds of kilometers, but their origin and development has been much debated by scientists. New work by a team of researchers led by Isaac Smith … Continue reading
Posted in Reports
Tagged atmosphere, cyclic steps, ice, katabatic jump, katabatic winds, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, north polar ice cap, polar caps, polar regions, polar troughs, Shallow Radar, SHARAD, south polar ice cap, sublimation, water, water vapor
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Was nitrogen in the early Mars atmosphere a key to ancient habitability?
Scientists have long suspected that ancient Mars had a thicker atmosphere and temperatures warmer and far more habitable than at present. But modelers have difficulties making the numbers come out right,
Posted in Reports
Tagged atmosphere, carbon dioxide, climate, climate change, CO2, early Mars, habitability, N2, nitrogen, water, water vapor
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Well-rounded pebbles in Gale Crater’s rocks point to longtime stream flow
Mars Science Laboratory rover Curiosity landed in Gale Crater at a feature called Bradbury Rise, which lies near the far end of the Peace Vallis alluvial fan. The fan is a broad, flat deposit of sand, gravel, and pebbles washed … Continue reading
Posted in Reports
Tagged Aeolis Mons, alluvial fans, Bradbury Rise, climate change, conglomerate rocks, Curiosity, fluvial channels, Gale Crater, Goulburn, gravel, Hottah, Link, Mars Pathfinder, Mount Sharp, outcrops, Peace Vallis, pebbles, streambeds, water
1 Comment
Aeolis Serpens, Mars’ longest sinuous ridge, is an ancient riverbed
A linear ridge that winds for more than 200 kilometers (120 miles) through part of South Australia was a river channel roughly 10 million years ago. After the paleoriver stopped flowing, silica-rich groundwater seeped into the riverbed, cementing its sediments.
Posted in Reports
Tagged Aeolis Dorsa, Aeolis Serpens, climate, CTX, fluvial channels, fluvial landforms, groundwater, HiRISE, Medusae Fossae Formation, sinuous ridge, water
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Most deltas on Mars created by short, catastrophic floods
Rivers that run into lakes and other standing bodies of water drop sediment where the flow slackens as it enters the body of water. Over time, the accumulating material builds a delta — a wedge of sediment whose form can … Continue reading
Posted in Reports
Tagged atmosphere, channels, climate, climate change, crater lakes, deltas, floods, water
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Are brines actually needed to make recurring slope lineae flow?
Recurring slope lineae (RSL) are finger-like dark lines on steep slopes that appear and grow longer during the warmest time of year, then fade and disappear over winter. They repeat the following Mars year in the same places. While scientists … Continue reading
Posted in Reports
Tagged atmosphere, climate, climate change, Context Camera, CTX, HiRISE, ice, lineae, LPSC 2013, Mars Odyssey, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, recurring slope lineae, RSL, TES, Thermal Emission Imaging System, Thermal Emission Spectrometer, water
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