Keywords:ChemCam; Gale Crater; Laser Induced Breakdown Spectrome-ter (LIBS)
Publisher:Pasadena, CA : Jet Propulsion Laboratory, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 2012.
Citation:44th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (LPSC 2013) Houston, Texas, March 18-22, 2013
Abstract:
Many locations on Mars have low color contrast between the rocks and soils due to the rocks being “dusty”—basically having a surface that is spectrally similar to Martian soil. In general this has been interpreted as soil and/or dust clinging to the rock though either mechanical or electrostic processes. However, given the apparent mobility of thin films of water forming cemented soils on Mars and at Gale Crater [e.g. 1,2], the possibility exists that some of these “dusty” surfaces may actually be coatings formed by thin films of water locally mobilizing soil/air fall material at the rock interface. This type of coating was observed by Spirit during an investigation of the rock Mazatzal which showed enhanced salts above “normal soil” [3] and an enhancement of nano phase iron oxide that was ~ 10 μm thick [4]. We decided to use ChemCam to investigate the possibility of similar rock coatings forming at the Rocknest site at Gale Crater.