Publication Date:
1997-12-31
Description:
Many of the particles currently suspended in the martian atmosphere are magnetic, with an average saturation magnetization of about 4 A. m2/kg (amperes times square meters per kilogram). The particles appear to consist of claylike aggregates stained or cemented with ferric oxide (Fe2O3); at least some of the stain and cement is probably maghemite (gamma-Fe2O3). The presence of the gamma phase would imply that Fe2+ ions leached from the bedrock, passing through a state as free Fe2+ ions dissolved in liquid water. These particles could be a freeze-dried precipitate from ground water poured out on the surface. An alternative is that the magnetic particles are titanomagnetite occurring in palagonite and inherited directly from a basaltic precursor.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Notes: 〈/span〉Hviid, S F -- Madsen, M B -- Gunnlaugsson, H P -- Goetz, W -- Knudsen, J M -- Hargraves, R B -- Smith, P -- Britt, D -- Dinesen, A R -- Mogensen, C T -- Olsen, M -- Pedersen, C T -- Vistisen, L -- New York, N.Y. -- Science. 1997 Dec 5;278(5344):1768-70.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Author address: 〈/span〉Oersted Laboratory, Niels Bohr Institute for Astronomy, Physics, and Geophysics, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Record origin:〈/span〉 〈a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9388172" target="_blank"〉PubMed〈/a〉
Keywords:
Atmosphere
;
*Extraterrestrial Environment
;
Ferric Compounds
;
Ferrosoferric Oxide
;
Iron
;
*Magnetics
;
*Mars
;
Minerals
;
Oxides
;
Silicates
;
Water
Print ISSN:
0036-8075
Electronic ISSN:
1095-9203
Topics:
Biology
,
Chemistry and Pharmacology
,
Computer Science
,
Medicine
,
Natural Sciences in General
,
Physics
