Possible Clays near Margaritifer Chaos
According to CRISM multispectral data, the exposures of light-toned materials (~on small hills and between darker dunes~) shows a strong iron-magnesium phyllosilicate (clay) signatures in this area. Phyllosilicates, or sheet silicates, are an important group of minerals that includes the micas, chlorite, serpentine, talc, and the clay minerals.
The existence of clay minerals is especially interesting on Mars since we want to know under what conditions these minerals formed. Could it have been the presence of water?
Image cutout is less than 1 km (under 1 mi) across and the spacecraft altitude was 263 km (164 mi). For full observation details including images with scale bars, visit the source link.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
Possible Clays near Margaritifer Chaos
According to CRISM multispectral data, the exposures of light-toned materials (~on small hills and between darker dunes~) shows a strong iron-magnesium phyllosilicate (clay) signatures in this area. Phyllosilicates, or sheet silicates, are an important group of minerals that includes the micas, chlorite, serpentine, talc, and the clay minerals.
The existence of clay minerals is especially interesting on Mars since we want to know under what conditions these minerals formed. Could it have been the presence of water?
Image cutout is less than 1 km (under 1 mi) across and the spacecraft altitude was 263 km (164 mi). For full observation details including images with scale bars, visit the source link.
NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona