Mineralogy at Meridiani Planum from the Mini-TES Experiment on the Opportunity Rover

Christensen, P. R.; Wyatt, M. B.; Glotch, T. D.; Rogers, A. D.; Anwar, Saadat; Arvidson, R. E.; Bandfield, J. L.; Blaney, D. L.; Budney, C. J.; Calvin, W. M.; Fallacaro, A.; Fergason, Robin L.; Gorelick, Noel; Graff, T. G.; Hamilton, Victoria E.; Hayes, Alexander G.; Johnson, J. R.; Knudson, A. T.; McSween, H. Y.; Mehall, G.; Mehall, L.; Moersch, Jeffrey E.; Morris, R. V.; Smith, M. D.; Squyres, S. W.; Ruff, Steven W.; Wolff, Michael

doi:10.1126/science.1104909

Cited by 386 publications

(294 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…TIR measurements of this dust from orbit and by the two Miniature Thermal Emission Spectrometers (Mini-TES) onboard the Mars Exploration Rovers (MER) have demonstrated a common spectral character that suggests uniform mineralogy and particle size wherever the dust is observed (Christensen et al 2004;Yen et al 2005). Bandfield et al (2003) measured TIR spectra of physical mixtures of labradorite as a proxy for martian dust combined with various carbonate minerals and found that a small amount (∼2 to 5 weight %) of fine-particulate magnesite (<10 micron) provided the best fit to distinctive features above 1300 cm −1 in TES spectra of dust.…”

Section: Carbonates In Martian Dustmentioning

confidence: 99%

Geochemistry of Carbonates on Mars: Implications for Climate History and Nature of Aqueous Environments

et al. 2012

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Ongoing research on martian meteorites and a new set of observations of carbonate minerals provided by an unprecedented series of robotic missions to Mars in the past 15 years help define new constraints on the history of martian climate with important cross- cutting themes including: the CO 2 budget of Mars, the role of Mg-, Fe-rich fluids on Mars, and the interplay between carbonate formation and acidity.Carbonate minerals have now been identified in a wide range of localities on Mars as well as in several martian meteorites. The martian meteorites contain carbonates in low abundances (<1 vol.%) and with a wide range of chemistries. Carbonates have also been identified by remote sensing instruments on orbiting spacecraft in several surface locations as well as in low concentrations (2-5 wt.%) in the martian dust. The Spirit rover also identified an outcrop with 16 to 34 wt.% carbonate material in the Columbia Hills of Gusev Crater that strongly resembled the composition of carbonate found in martian meteorite ALH 84001. Finally, the Phoenix lander identified concentrations of 3-6 wt.% carbonate in the soils of the northern plains.The carbonates discovered to date do not clearly indicate the past presence of a dense Noachian atmosphere, but instead suggest localized hydrothermal aqueous environments with limited water availability that existed primarily in the early to mid-Noachian followed by low levels of carbonate formation from thin films of transient water from the late Noachian to the present. The prevalence of carbonate along with evidence for active carbonate precipitation suggests that a global acidic chemistry is unlikely and a more complex relationship between acidity and carbonate formation is present.

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Section: Carbonates In Martian Dustmentioning

confidence: 99%

Geochemistry of Carbonates on Mars: Implications for Climate History and Nature of Aqueous Environments

et al. 2012

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“…The Mars Exploration Rovers Opportunity and Spirit have contributed our first-ever geologist's-eye views of stratigraphic successions on Mars (e.g. Christensen et al, 2004;Squyres et al, 2004Squyres et al, , 2006Squyres et al, , 2009Grotzinger et al, 2005;Haskin et al, 2005). Building on this success, the extraordinary instrument package and anticipated roving capability of the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) position us to use new rover observations to test hypotheses generated on the basis of highresolution orbital data.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Preservation of Martian Organic and Environmental Records: Final Report of the Mars Biosignature Working Group

Summons

Amend²,

Bish³

et al. 2011

Astrobiology

260

207

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International audienceThe Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) has an instrument package capable of making measurements of past and present environmental conditions. The data generated may tell us if Mars is, or ever was, able to support life. However, the knowledge of Mars' past history and the geological processes most likely to preserve a record of that history remain sparse and, in some instances, ambiguous. Physical, chemical, and geological processes relevant to biosignature preservation on Earth, especially under conditions early in its history when microbial life predominated, are also imperfectly known. Here, we present the report of a working group chartered by the Co-Chairs of NASA's MSL Project Science Group, John P. Grotzinger and Michael A. Meyer, to review and evaluate potential for biosignature formation and preservation on Mars. Orbital images confirm that layered rocks achieved kilometer-scale thicknesses in some regions of ancient Mars. Clearly, interplays of sedimentation and erosional processes govern present-day exposures, and our understanding of these processes is incomplete. MSL can document and evaluate patterns of stratigraphic development as well as the sources of layered materials and their subsequent diagenesis. It can also document other potential biosignature repositories such as hydrothermal environments. These capabilities offer an unprecedented opportunity to decipher key aspects of the environmental evolution of Mars' early surface and aspects of the diagenetic processes that have operated since that time. Considering the MSL instrument payload package, we identified the following classes of biosignatures as within the MSL detection window: organism morphologies (cells, body fossils, casts), biofabrics (including microbial mats), diagnostic organic molecules, isotopic signatures, evidence of biomineralization and bioalteration, spatial patterns in chemistry, and biogenic gases. Of these, biogenic organic molecules and biogenic atmospheric gases are considered the most definitive and most readily detectable by MSL

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“…Roush et al (1989) and Pollack et al (1991) reported the detection of sulfate features in the 8-10 μm-region, which is consistent with the presence of 10 to 15 wt% of sulfates in the airborne dust. Christensen et al (2004), using the Miniature Thermal Emission Spectrometer (Mini-TES) aboard the Opportunity rover, detected magnesium and calcium sulfates in outcrops at Meridiani Planum. Finally, using the OMEGA infrared imaging spectrometer aboard the Mars Express orbiter, Bibring et al (2005) identified sulfates in many places on the Martian surface.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A stringent upper limit to SO₂in the Martian atmosphere

Encrenaz

Greathouse

Richter

et al. 2011

A&A

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Surfur-bearing molecules have been found at the surface of Mars by the Viking lander, the Spirit and Opportunity rovers, and the OMEGA infrared spectrometer aboard Mars Express. However, no gaseous sulfur-bearing species have ever been detected in the Martian atmosphere. We search for SO 2 signatures in the thermal spectrum of Mars at 7.4 μm using the Texas Echelon Cross Echelle Spectrograph (TEXES) at the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF). Data were obtained on Oct. 12, 2009 (Ls = 353 • ), in the 1350-1360 cm −1 range, with a spatial resolution of 1 arcsec (after convolution over three pixels along the N-S axis and two steps along the E-W axis) and a resolving power of 80 000. To improve the signal-to-noise ratio (S/N), we co-added the Martian spectrum around the positions of nine selected SO 2 transitions with a high S/N and no telluric contamination. From a mean spectrum, averaged over 35 pixels in the region of maximum continuum, we infer a 2σ upper limit of 0.3 ppb to the SO 2 mixing ratio, assuming that our instrumental errors are combined according to Gaussian statistics. Our upper limit is three times lower than the upper limit derived by Krasnopolsky (2005, Icarus, 178, 487), who used the same technique on previous TEXES data. In addition, we derive an upper limit of 2 ppb at each spatial pixel of the region observed by TEXES, which covers the longitude ranges 50 E-170 E for latitudes above 30 N, 100 E-170 E for latitudes between 0 and 30 N, and 110 E-170 E for latitudes between 15 S and 0. The non-detection of localized SO 2 sources in the observed area is consistent with a homogeneous distribution being expected around equinox for noncondensible species with a lifetime longer than the global mixing time. In view of the typically large SO 2 /CH 4 ratio observed in terrestrial volcanoes, and assuming a comparable volcanic composition for Mars and the Earth, our result reaffirms that a volcanic origin is unlikely for any methane in the Martian atmosphere.

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Mineralogy at Meridiani Planum from the Mini-TES Experiment on the Opportunity Rover

Cited by 386 publications

References 39 publications

Geochemistry of Carbonates on Mars: Implications for Climate History and Nature of Aqueous Environments

Geochemistry of Carbonates on Mars: Implications for Climate History and Nature of Aqueous Environments

Preservation of Martian Organic and Environmental Records: Final Report of the Mars Biosignature Working Group

A stringent upper limit to SO₂in the Martian atmosphere

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Mineralogy at Meridiani Planum from the Mini-TES Experiment on the Opportunity Rover

Cited by 386 publications

References 39 publications

Geochemistry of Carbonates on Mars: Implications for Climate History and Nature of Aqueous Environments

Geochemistry of Carbonates on Mars: Implications for Climate History and Nature of Aqueous Environments

Preservation of Martian Organic and Environmental Records: Final Report of the Mars Biosignature Working Group

A stringent upper limit to SO2in the Martian atmosphere

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About

A stringent upper limit to SO₂in the Martian atmosphere