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      Chemistry, mineralogy, and grain properties at Namib and High dunes, Bagnold dune field, Gale crater, Mars: A synthesis of Curiosity rover observations

      research-article
      1 , 2 , ,   3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 1 , 8 , 2 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 6 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 15 , 11 , 2 , 13 , 14 , 18 , 2 , 14 , 5 , 11 , 2 , 5 , 19 , 14 , 18 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 1 , 18 , 24 , 2 , 14 , 15 , 25 , 2
      Journal of Geophysical Research. Planets
      John Wiley and Sons Inc.
      Mars soils, sand dunes, dust, amorphous phase, volatiles, grain size

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          Abstract

          The Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover performed coordinated measurements to examine the textures and compositions of aeolian sands in the active Bagnold dune field. The Bagnold sands are rounded to subrounded, very fine to medium sized (~45–500 μm) with ≥6 distinct grain colors. In contrast to sands examined by Curiosity in a dust‐covered, inactive bedform called Rocknest and soils at other landing sites, Bagnold sands are darker, less red, better sorted, have fewer silt‐sized or smaller grains, and show no evidence for cohesion. Nevertheless, Bagnold mineralogy and Rocknest mineralogy are similar with plagioclase, olivine, and pyroxenes in similar proportions comprising >90% of crystalline phases, along with a substantial amorphous component (35% ± 15%). Yet Bagnold and Rocknest bulk chemistry differ. Bagnold sands are Si enriched relative to other soils at Gale crater, and H 2O, S, and Cl are lower relative to all previously measured Martian soils and most Gale crater rocks. Mg, Ni, Fe, and Mn are enriched in the coarse‐sieved fraction of Bagnold sands, corroborated by visible/near‐infrared spectra that suggest enrichment of olivine. Collectively, patterns in major element chemistry and volatile release data indicate two distinctive volatile reservoirs in Martian soils: (1) amorphous components in the sand‐sized fraction (represented by Bagnold) that are Si‐enriched, hydroxylated alteration products and/or H 2O‐ or OH‐bearing impact or volcanic glasses and (2) amorphous components in the fine fraction (<40 μm; represented by Rocknest and other bright soils) that are Fe, S, and Cl enriched with low Si and adsorbed and structural H 2O.

          Key Points

          • Because of ongoing aeolian activity, the Bagnold dunes consist of well‐sorted sands and lack the finer grains typical of Martian soils

          • Dune sands are chemically distinct with elevated Si, Mg, and Ni and lower H 2O, S, and Cl relative to all previously measured Martian fines

          • Two distinct, water‐/OH‐bearing amorphous components are identified: Fe‐, S‐, and Cl‐rich material in dust and Si‐rich material in the sands

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          Most cited references126

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          A habitable fluvio-lacustrine environment at Yellowknife Bay, Gale crater, Mars.

          The Curiosity rover discovered fine-grained sedimentary rocks, which are inferred to represent an ancient lake and preserve evidence of an environment that would have been suited to support a martian biosphere founded on chemolithoautotrophy. This aqueous environment was characterized by neutral pH, low salinity, and variable redox states of both iron and sulfur species. Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, sulfur, nitrogen, and phosphorus were measured directly as key biogenic elements; by inference, phosphorus is assumed to have been available. The environment probably had a minimum duration of hundreds to tens of thousands of years. These results highlight the biological viability of fluvial-lacustrine environments in the post-Noachian history of Mars.
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            Deposition, exhumation, and paleoclimate of an ancient lake deposit, Gale crater, Mars

            The landforms of northern Gale crater on Mars expose thick sequences of sedimentary rocks. Based on images obtained by the Curiosity rover, we interpret these outcrops as evidence for past fluvial, deltaic, and lacustrine environments. Degradation of the crater wall and rim probably supplied these sediments, which advanced inward from the wall, infilling both the crater and an internal lake basin to a thickness of at least 75 meters. This intracrater lake system probably existed intermittently for thousands to millions of years, implying a relatively wet climate that supplied moisture to the crater rim and transported sediment via streams into the lake basin. The deposits in Gale crater were then exhumed, probably by wind-driven erosion, creating Aeolis Mons (Mount Sharp).
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              Mineralogy of a mudstone at Yellowknife Bay, Gale crater, Mars.

              Sedimentary rocks at Yellowknife Bay (Gale crater) on Mars include mudstone sampled by the Curiosity rover. The samples, John Klein and Cumberland, contain detrital basaltic minerals, calcium sulfates, iron oxide or hydroxides, iron sulfides, amorphous material, and trioctahedral smectites. The John Klein smectite has basal spacing of ~10 angstroms, indicating little interlayer hydration. The Cumberland smectite has basal spacing at both ~13.2 and ~10 angstroms. The larger spacing suggests a partially chloritized interlayer or interlayer magnesium or calcium facilitating H2O retention. Basaltic minerals in the mudstone are similar to those in nearby eolian deposits. However, the mudstone has far less Fe-forsterite, possibly lost with formation of smectite plus magnetite. Late Noachian/Early Hesperian or younger age indicates that clay mineral formation on Mars extended beyond Noachian time.
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                Author and article information

                Contributors
                ehlmann@caltech.edu
                Journal
                J Geophys Res Planets
                J Geophys Res Planets
                10.1002/(ISSN)2169-9100
                JGRE
                Journal of Geophysical Research. Planets
                John Wiley and Sons Inc. (Hoboken )
                2169-9097
                2169-9100
                07 December 2017
                December 2017
                : 122
                : 12 ( doiID: 10.1002/jgre.v122.12 )
                : 2510-2543
                Affiliations
                [ 1 ] Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences California Institute of Technology Pasadena California USA
                [ 2 ] Jet Propulsion Laboratory California Institute of Technology Pasadena California USA
                [ 3 ] Malin Space Science Systems San Diego California USA
                [ 4 ] Jacobs Technology Houston Texas USA
                [ 5 ] NASA Johnson Space Center Houston Texas USA
                [ 6 ] Department of Geosciences University of Arizona Tucson Arizona USA
                [ 7 ] Space Research Institute—RAS Moscow Russia
                [ 8 ] Cornell Center for Astrophysics and Planetary Science Cornell University Ithaca New York USA
                [ 9 ] Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences Washington University in Saint Louis Saint Louis Missouri USA
                [ 10 ] Exobiology Branch NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field California USA
                [ 11 ] Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory Laurel Maryland USA
                [ 12 ] Deceased 26 April 2017
                [ 13 ] NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt Maryland USA
                [ 14 ] Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et Planétologie CNRS‐Université Toulouse Toulouse France
                [ 15 ] School of Earth and Space Exploration Arizona State University Tempe Arizona USA
                [ 16 ] Guelph‐Waterloo Physics Institute University of Guelph Guelph Ontario Canada
                [ 17 ] Department of Space Studies Southwest Research Institute Boulder Colorado USA
                [ 18 ] Observatoire Midi‐Pyrénées Université de Toulouse Toulouse France
                [ 19 ] Planetary and Space Science Centre University of New Brunswick Fredericton New Brunswick Canada
                [ 20 ] Department of Geology and Geophysics University of Hawai'i at Mānoa Honolulu Hawaii USA
                [ 21 ] Institut de Recherche en Astrophysique et Planétologie Toulouse France
                [ 22 ] Institut für Optische Sensorsysteme German Aerospace Center (DLR) Berlin Germany
                [ 23 ] Department of Geosciences Stony Brook University Stony Brook New York USA
                [ 24 ] Planetary Science Institute Tucson Arizona USA
                [ 25 ] Los Alamos National Laboratory Los Alamos New Mexico USA
                Author notes
                [*] [* ] Correspondence to: B. L. Ehlmann,

                ehlmann@ 123456caltech.edu

                Author information
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2745-3240
                http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7197-5751
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3036-170X
                http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9185-6768
                http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9941-1552
                http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4191-598X
                http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4017-5158
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2854-0362
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0834-4487
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6790-6793
                http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7823-7794
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9767-4153
                http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7928-834X
                http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8675-2083
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5586-4901
                http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1896-1726
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0703-3951
                http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0567-8876
                http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4715-4544
                http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4561-3663
                http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3943-1492
                http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1870-3663
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6628-6297
                http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3385-9957
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5444-952X
                http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7661-2626
                http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2665-286X
                http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3409-7344
                Article
                JGRE20693 2017JE005267
                10.1002/2017JE005267
                5815393
                29497589
                5dccb9cd-2fe5-4c82-9e1c-aa1b9905d256
                ©2017. The Authors.

                This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution‐NonCommercial‐NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non‐commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.

                History
                : 16 January 2017
                : 18 May 2017
                : 19 May 2017
                Page count
                Figures: 19, Tables: 5, Pages: 34, Words: 13359
                Funding
                Funded by: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
                Categories
                Investigations of the Bagnold Dune Field, Gale crater
                Geochemistry
                Planetary Geochemistry
                Mineralogy and Petrology
                Planetary Mineralogy and Petrology
                Planetary Sciences: Solid Surface Planets
                Composition
                Erosion and Weathering
                Physical Properties of Materials
                Surface Materials and Properties
                Planetary Sciences: Solar System Objects
                Mars
                Research Article
                Research Articles
                Custom metadata
                2.0
                jgre20693
                December 2017
                Converter:WILEY_ML3GV2_TO_NLMPMC version:version=5.3.2.2 mode:remove_FC converted:16.02.2018

                mars soils,sand dunes,dust,amorphous phase,volatiles,grain size
                mars soils, sand dunes, dust, amorphous phase, volatiles, grain size

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