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The Sedimentary History of Mars as Observed by RoversMars has a sedimentary history that spans billions of years. Orbital images have allowed for the identification of vast regional sedimentary deposits that can be traced over 100s of kilometers and are 100s of meters thick including localized alluvial, deltaic, and lacustrine deposits. Detections of secondary minerals in these deposits from orbital spectroscopy suggest the aqueous history of early Mars varied as a function of space and time. Orbital observations, however, provide a simplified and incomplete picture of Mars’ sedimentary history because measurements for inferring sediment transport and deposition, such as lithology, grain size, and internal structures, and measurements for inferring sediment source and aqueous alteration, such as outcrop-scale mineralogic and geochemical composition and diagenetic features, cannot be identified from orbit. Rover observations have significantly enhanced our view of ancient and modern sedimentary environments on Mars, resulting in detailed reconstructions of paleo-environments and habitability.
Document ID
20190001851
Acquisition Source
Johnson Space Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Rampe, E. B. (NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Arvidson, R. E. (Washington Univ. Saint Louis, MO, United States)
Edgar, L. A. (Geological Survey Flagstaff, AZ, United States)
Edgett, K. S. (Malin Space Science Systems San Diego, CA, United States)
Fedo, C. M. (Tennessee Univ. Knoxville, TN, United States)
Fraeman, A. A. (Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Grotzinger, J. P. (California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA, United States)
McLennan, S. M. (State Univ. of New York Stony Brook, NY, United States)
Ming, D. W. (NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Morris, R. V. (NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Siebach, K. L. (Rice Univ. Houston, TX, United States)
Sullivan, R. J. (Cornell Univ. Ithaca, NY, United States)
Date Acquired
March 25, 2019
Publication Date
March 18, 2019
Subject Category
Lunar And Planetary Science And Exploration
Report/Patent Number
JSC-E-DAA-TN66078
LPI Contrib. No. 2132
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Public Use Permitted.

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