Geomorphology of Cape York and Solander Point, Examining Opportunity's destination at Endeavour Crater Options

[Stu]

Everyone, say hello to Cape York... in colour...



Larger version on my blog: http://roadtoendeavour.wordpress.com/2010/...-york-in-colour

[Julius]

I am no planetary geologist and therfore may not be knowledgable to answer such queries but I think that CY forms part of endeavour crater rim and thus represents material excavated from deeper layers on Mars which presumably contain the clays which predate the sulphates!

[centsworth_II]

... I think that CY forms part of endeavour crater rim and thus represents material excavated from deeper layers...

Yes, but at one point the sulphate layers covered Cape York. They have been eroded away so I would expect to find blueberries that eroded out of the sulphate layers on Cape York but I would expect little left of the Sulphate layers themselves. As for why the Meridiani plains leading up to Cape York are higher, I guess it's just a matter of differential erosion rates due to the prevailing winds over the topography of the crater.

[bgarlick]

Yes, but at one point the sulphate layers covered Cape York. They have been eroded away so I would expect to find blueberries that eroded out of the sulphate layers on Cape York but I would expect little left of the Sulphate layers themselves.

This is quite plausable. In this case we should see a blueberry lag deposit directly on the clays (ie the sulfates are all gone in places). Blueberries over clays (and other CY rim materials) would look different than blueberries over sulfates & sands (which we are driving on) and would explain why CY is destinctive looking even though it is lower than the plains.