ALBERT

Description: [1]  The first four rocks examined by the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) indicate Curiosity landed in a lithologically diverse region of Mars. These rocks, collectively dubbed the Bradbury assemblage, were studied along an eastward traverse (sols 46-102). Compositions range from Na and Al-rich mugearite Jake_Matijevic to Fe, Mg, and Zn-rich alkali-rich basalt/hawaiite Bathurst_Inlet and span nearly the entire range in FeO* and MnO of the datasets from previous martian missions and martian meteorites. The Bradbury assemblage is also enriched in K and moderately volatile metals (Zn and Ge). These elements do not correlate with Cl or S, suggesting they are associated with the rocks themselves and not with salt-rich coatings. Three out of the four Bradbury rocks plot along a line in elemental variation diagrams, suggesting mixing between Al-rich and Fe-rich components. ChemCam analyses give insight to their degree of chemical heterogeneity and grain size. Variations in trace elements detected by ChemCam suggest chemical weathering (Li) and concentration in mineral phases (e.g., Rb and Sr in feldspars). We interpret the Bradbury assemblage to be broadly volcanic and/or volcaniclastic, derived either from near the Gale crater rim and transported by the Peace Vallis fan network, or from a local volcanic source within Gale Crater. High Fe and Fe/Mn in Et_Then likely reflect secondary precipitation of Fe 3+ -oxides as a cement or rind. The K-rich signature of the Bradbury assemblage, if igneous in origin, may have formed by small degrees of partial melting of metasomatized mantle.

Description: Late Cenozoic climate history in Africa was punctuated by episodes of variability, characterized by the appearance and disappearance of large freshwater lakes within the East African Rift Valley. In the Baringo-Bogoria basin, a well-dated sequence of diatomites and fluviolacustrine sediments documents the precessionally forced cycling of an extensive lake system between 2.70 Ma and 2.55 Ma. One diatomite unit was studied, using the oxygen isotope composition of diatom silica combined with X-ray fluorescence spectrometry and taxonomic assemblage changes, to explore the nature of climate variability during this interval. Data reveal a rapid onset and gradual decline of deepwater lake conditions, which exhibit millennial-scale cyclicity of ~1400–1700 yr, similar to late Quaternary Dansgaard-Oeschger events. These cycles are thought to reflect enhanced precipitation coincident with increased monsoonal strength, suggesting the existence of a teleconnection between the high latitudes and East Africa during this period. Such climatic variability could have affected faunal and floral evolution at the time.

Description: A suite of eight rocks analyzed by the Curiosity Rover while it was stopped at the Rocknest sand ripple show the greatest chemical divergence of any potentially sedimentary rocks analyzed in the early part of the mission. Relative to average martian soil and to the stratigraphically lower units encountered as part of the Yellowknife Bay formation, these rocks are significantly depleted in MgO, with a mean of 1.3 wt %, and high in Fe, averaging over 20 wt % FeO T . with values between 15 - 26 wt% FeO T . The variable iron and low magnesium, and rock texture make it unlikely that these are igneous rocks. Rock surface textures range from rough to smooth, can be pitted or grooved, and show various degrees of wind erosion. Some rocks display poorly defined layering while others seem to show possible fractures. Narrow vertical voids are present in Rocknest-3, one of the rocks showing the strongest layering. Rocks in the vicinity of Rocknest may have undergone some diagenesis similar to other rocks in the Yellowknife Bay Formation as indicated by the presence of soluble calcium phases. The most reasonable scenario is that fine-grained sediments, potentially a mixture of feldspar-rich rocks from Bradbury Rise and normal martian soil, was lithified together by an iron-rich cement.

Description: The Mars rover Opportunity has explored Victoria crater, an approximately 750-meter eroded impact crater formed in sulfate-rich sedimentary rocks. Impact-related stratigraphy is preserved in the crater walls, and meteoritic debris is present near the crater rim. The size of hematite-rich concretions decreases up-section, documenting variation in the intensity of groundwater processes. Layering in the crater walls preserves evidence of ancient wind-blown dunes. Compositional variations with depth mimic those approximately 6 kilometers to the north and demonstrate that water-induced alteration at Meridiani Planum was regional in scope.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Notes: 〈/span〉Squyres, S W -- Knoll, A H -- Arvidson, R E -- Ashley, J W -- Bell, J F 3rd -- Calvin, W M -- Christensen, P R -- Clark, B C -- Cohen, B A -- de Souza, P A Jr -- Edgar, L -- Farrand, W H -- Fleischer, I -- Gellert, R -- Golombek, M P -- Grant, J -- Grotzinger, J -- Hayes, A -- Herkenhoff, K E -- Johnson, J R -- Jolliff, B -- Klingelhofer, G -- Knudson, A -- Li, R -- McCoy, T J -- McLennan, S M -- Ming, D W -- Mittlefehldt, D W -- Morris, R V -- Rice, J W Jr -- Schroder, C -- Sullivan, R J -- Yen, A -- Yingst, R A -- New York, N.Y. -- Science. 2009 May 22;324(5930):1058-61. doi: 10.1126/science.1170355.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Author address: 〈/span〉Department of Astronomy, Space Sciences Building, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA. squyres@astro.cornell.edu〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Record origin:〈/span〉 〈a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19461001" target="_blank"〉PubMed〈/a〉

Description: Stable isotope ratios of H, C, and O are powerful indicators of a wide variety of planetary geophysical processes, and for Mars they reveal the record of loss of its atmosphere and subsequent interactions with its surface such as carbonate formation. We report in situ measurements of the isotopic ratios of D/H and (18)O/(16)O in water and (13)C/(12)C, (18)O/(16)O, (17)O/(16)O, and (13)C(18)O/(12)C(16)O in carbon dioxide, made in the martian atmosphere at Gale Crater from the Curiosity rover using the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM)'s tunable laser spectrometer (TLS). Comparison between our measurements in the modern atmosphere and those of martian meteorites such as ALH 84001 implies that the martian reservoirs of CO2 and H2O were largely established ~4 billion years ago, but that atmospheric loss or surface interaction may be still ongoing.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Notes: 〈/span〉Webster, Chris R -- Mahaffy, Paul R -- Flesch, Gregory J -- Niles, Paul B -- Jones, John H -- Leshin, Laurie A -- Atreya, Sushil K -- Stern, Jennifer C -- Christensen, Lance E -- Owen, Tobias -- Franz, Heather -- Pepin, Robert O -- Steele, Andrew -- MSL Science Team -- Achilles, Cherie -- Agard, Christophe -- Alves Verdasca, Jose Alexandre -- Anderson, Robert -- Anderson, Ryan -- Archer, Doug -- Armiens-Aparicio, Carlos -- Arvidson, Ray -- Atlaskin, Evgeny -- Aubrey, Andrew -- Baker, Burt -- Baker, Michael -- Balic-Zunic, Tonci -- Baratoux, David -- Baroukh, Julien -- Barraclough, Bruce -- Bean, Keri -- Beegle, Luther -- Behar, Alberto -- Bell, James -- Bender, Steve -- Benna, Mehdi -- Bentz, Jennifer -- Berger, Gilles -- Berger, Jeff -- Berman, Daniel -- Bish, David -- Blake, David F -- Blanco Avalos, Juan J -- Blaney, Diana -- Blank, Jen -- Blau, Hannah -- Bleacher, Lora -- Boehm, Eckart -- Botta, Oliver -- Bottcher, Stephan -- Boucher, Thomas -- Bower, Hannah -- Boyd, Nick -- Boynton, Bill -- Breves, Elly -- Bridges, John -- Bridges, Nathan -- Brinckerhoff, William -- Brinza, David -- Bristow, Thomas -- Brunet, Claude -- Brunner, Anna -- Brunner, Will -- Buch, Arnaud -- Bullock, Mark -- Burmeister, Sonke -- Cabane, Michel -- Calef, Fred -- Cameron, James -- Campbell, John -- Cantor, Bruce -- Caplinger, Michael -- Caride Rodriguez, Javier -- Carmosino, Marco -- Carrasco Blazquez, Isaias -- Charpentier, Antoine -- Chipera, Steve -- Choi, David -- Clark, Benton -- Clegg, Sam -- Cleghorn, Timothy -- Cloutis, Ed -- Cody, George -- Coll, Patrice -- Conrad, Pamela -- Coscia, David -- Cousin, Agnes -- Cremers, David -- Crisp, Joy -- Cros, Alain -- Cucinotta, Frank -- d'Uston, Claude -- Davis, Scott -- Day, Mackenzie -- de la Torre Juarez, Manuel -- DeFlores, Lauren -- DeLapp, Dorothea -- DeMarines, Julia -- DesMarais, David -- Dietrich, William -- Dingler, Robert -- Donny, Christophe -- Downs, Bob -- Drake, Darrell -- Dromart, Gilles -- Dupont, Audrey -- Duston, Brian -- Dworkin, Jason -- Dyar, M Darby -- Edgar, Lauren -- Edgett, Kenneth -- Edwards, Christopher -- Edwards, Laurence -- Ehlmann, Bethany -- Ehresmann, Bent -- Eigenbrode, Jen -- Elliott, Beverley -- Elliott, Harvey -- Ewing, Ryan -- Fabre, Cecile -- Fairen, Alberto -- Farley, Ken -- Farmer, Jack -- Fassett, Caleb -- Favot, Laurent -- Fay, Donald -- Fedosov, Fedor -- Feldman, Jason -- Feldman, Sabrina -- Fisk, Marty -- Fitzgibbon, Mike -- Floyd, Melissa -- Fluckiger, Lorenzo -- Forni, Olivier -- Fraeman, Abby -- Francis, Raymond -- Francois, Pascaline -- Freissinet, Caroline -- French, Katherine Louise -- Frydenvang, Jens -- Gaboriaud, Alain -- Gailhanou, Marc -- Garvin, James -- Gasnault, Olivier -- Geffroy, Claude -- Gellert, Ralf -- Genzer, Maria -- Glavin, Daniel -- Godber, Austin -- Goesmann, Fred -- Goetz, Walter -- Golovin, Dmitry -- Gomez Gomez, Felipe -- Gomez-Elvira, Javier -- Gondet, Brigitte -- Gordon, Suzanne -- Gorevan, Stephen -- Grant, John -- Griffes, Jennifer -- Grinspoon, David -- Grotzinger, John -- Guillemot, Philippe -- Guo, Jingnan -- Gupta, Sanjeev -- Guzewich, Scott -- Haberle, Robert -- Halleaux, Douglas -- Hallet, Bernard -- Hamilton, Vicky -- Hardgrove, Craig -- Harker, David -- Harpold, Daniel -- Harri, Ari-Matti -- Harshman, Karl -- Hassler, Donald -- Haukka, Harri -- Hayes, Alex -- Herkenhoff, Ken -- Herrera, Paul -- Hettrich, Sebastian -- Heydari, Ezat -- Hipkin, Victoria -- Hoehler, Tori -- Hollingsworth, Jeff -- Hudgins, Judy -- Huntress, Wesley -- Hurowitz, Joel -- Hviid, Stubbe -- Iagnemma, Karl -- Indyk, Steve -- Israel, Guy -- Jackson, Ryan -- Jacob, Samantha -- Jakosky, Bruce -- Jensen, Elsa -- Jensen, Jaqueline Klovgaard -- Johnson, Jeffrey -- Johnson, Micah -- Johnstone, Steve -- Jones, Andrea -- Joseph, Jonathan -- Jun, Insoo -- Kah, Linda -- Kahanpaa, Henrik -- Kahre, Melinda -- Karpushkina, Natalya -- Kasprzak, Wayne -- Kauhanen, Janne -- Keely, Leslie -- Kemppinen, Osku -- Keymeulen, Didier -- Kim, Myung-Hee -- Kinch, Kjartan -- King, Penny -- Kirkland, Laurel -- Kocurek, Gary -- Koefoed, Asmus -- Kohler, Jan -- Kortmann, Onno -- Kozyrev, Alexander -- Krezoski, Jill -- Krysak, Daniel -- Kuzmin, Ruslan -- Lacour, Jean Luc -- Lafaille, Vivian -- Langevin, Yves -- Lanza, Nina -- Lasue, Jeremie -- Le Mouelic, Stephane -- Lee, Ella Mae -- Lee, Qiu-Mei -- Lees, David -- Lefavor, Matthew -- Lemmon, Mark -- Lepinette Malvitte, Alain -- Leveille, Richard -- Lewin-Carpintier, Eric -- Lewis, Kevin -- Li, Shuai -- Lipkaman, Leslie -- Little, Cynthia -- Litvak, Maxim -- Lorigny, Eric -- Lugmair, Guenter -- Lundberg, Angela -- Lyness, Eric -- Madsen, Morten -- Maki, Justin -- Malakhov, Alexey -- Malespin, Charles -- Malin, Michael -- Mangold, Nicolas -- Manhes, Gerard -- Manning, Heidi -- Marchand, Genevieve -- Marin Jimenez, Mercedes -- Martin Garcia, Cesar -- Martin, Dave -- Martin, Mildred -- Martinez-Frias, Jesus -- Martin-Soler, Javier -- Martin-Torres, F Javier -- Mauchien, Patrick -- Maurice, Sylvestre -- McAdam, Amy -- McCartney, Elaina -- McConnochie, Timothy -- McCullough, Emily -- McEwan, Ian -- McKay, Christopher -- McLennan, Scott -- McNair, Sean -- Melikechi, Noureddine -- Meslin, Pierre-Yves -- Meyer, Michael -- Mezzacappa, Alissa -- Miller, Hayden -- Miller, Kristen -- Milliken, Ralph -- Ming, Douglas -- Minitti, Michelle -- Mischna, Michael -- Mitrofanov, Igor -- Moersch, Jeff -- Mokrousov, Maxim -- Molina Jurado, Antonio -- Moores, John -- Mora-Sotomayor, Luis -- Morookian, John Michael -- Morris, Richard -- Morrison, Shaunna -- Mueller-Mellin, Reinhold -- Muller, Jan-Peter -- Munoz Caro, Guillermo -- Nachon, Marion -- Navarro Lopez, Sara -- Navarro-Gonzalez, Rafael -- Nealson, Kenneth -- Nefian, Ara -- Nelson, Tony -- Newcombe, Megan -- Newman, Claire -- Newsom, Horton -- Nikiforov, Sergey -- Nixon, Brian -- Noe Dobrea, Eldar -- Nolan, Thomas -- Oehler, Dorothy -- Ollila, Ann -- Olson, Timothy -- de Pablo Hernandez, Miguel Angel -- Paillet, Alexis -- Pallier, Etienne -- Palucis, Marisa -- Parker, Timothy -- Parot, Yann -- Patel, Kiran -- Paton, Mark -- Paulsen, Gale -- Pavlov, Alex -- Pavri, Betina -- Peinado-Gonzalez, Veronica -- Peret, Laurent -- Perez, Rene -- Perrett, Glynis -- Peterson, Joe -- Pilorget, Cedric -- Pinet, Patrick -- Pla-Garcia, Jorge -- Plante, Ianik -- Poitrasson, Franck -- Polkko, Jouni -- Popa, Radu -- Posiolova, Liliya -- Posner, Arik -- Pradler, Irina -- Prats, Benito -- Prokhorov, Vasily -- Purdy, Sharon Wilson -- Raaen, Eric -- Radziemski, Leon -- Rafkin, Scot -- Ramos, Miguel -- Rampe, Elizabeth -- Raulin, Francois -- Ravine, Michael -- Reitz, Gunther -- Renno, Nilton -- Rice, Melissa -- Richardson, Mark -- Robert, Francois -- Robertson, Kevin -- Rodriguez Manfredi, Jose Antonio -- Romeral-Planello, Julio J -- Rowland, Scott -- Rubin, David -- Saccoccio, Muriel -- Salamon, Andrew -- Sandoval, Jennifer -- Sanin, Anton -- Sans Fuentes, Sara Alejandra -- Saper, Lee -- Sarrazin, Philippe -- Sautter, Violaine -- Savijarvi, Hannu -- Schieber, Juergen -- Schmidt, Mariek -- Schmidt, Walter -- Scholes, Daniel -- Schoppers, Marcel -- Schroder, Susanne -- Schwenzer, Susanne -- Sebastian Martinez, Eduardo -- Sengstacken, Aaron -- Shterts, Ruslan -- Siebach, Kirsten -- Siili, Tero -- Simmonds, Jeff -- Sirven, Jean-Baptiste -- Slavney, Susie -- Sletten, Ronald -- Smith, Michael -- Sobron Sanchez, Pablo -- Spanovich, Nicole -- Spray, John -- Squyres, Steven -- Stack, Katie -- Stalport, Fabien -- Stein, Thomas -- Stewart, Noel -- Stipp, Susan Louise Svane -- Stoiber, Kevin -- Stolper, Ed -- Sucharski, Bob -- Sullivan, Rob -- Summons, Roger -- Sumner, Dawn -- Sun, Vivian -- Supulver, Kimberley -- Sutter, Brad -- Szopa, Cyril -- Tan, Florence -- Tate, Christopher -- Teinturier, Samuel -- ten Kate, Inge -- Thomas, Peter -- Thompson, Lucy -- Tokar, Robert -- Toplis, Mike -- Torres Redondo, Josefina -- Trainer, Melissa -- Treiman, Allan -- Tretyakov, Vladislav -- Urqui-O'Callaghan, Roser -- Van Beek, Jason -- Van Beek, Tessa -- VanBommel, Scott -- Vaniman, David -- Varenikov, Alexey -- Vasavada, Ashwin -- Vasconcelos, Paulo -- Vicenzi, Edward -- Vostrukhin, Andrey -- Voytek, Mary -- Wadhwa, Meenakshi -- Ward, Jennifer -- Weigle, Eddie -- Wellington, Danika -- Westall, Frances -- Wiens, Roger Craig -- Wilhelm, Mary Beth -- Williams, Amy -- Williams, Joshua -- Williams, Rebecca -- Williams, Richard B -- Wilson, Mike -- Wimmer-Schweingruber, Robert -- Wolff, Mike -- Wong, Mike -- Wray, James -- Wu, Megan -- Yana, Charles -- Yen, Albert -- Yingst, Aileen -- Zeitlin, Cary -- Zimdar, Robert -- Zorzano Mier, Maria-Paz -- New York, N.Y. -- Science. 2013 Jul 19;341(6143):260-3. doi: 10.1126/science.1237961.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Author address: 〈/span〉Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA. chris.r.webster@jpl.nasa.gov〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Record origin:〈/span〉 〈a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23869013" target="_blank"〉PubMed〈/a〉