Geomorphology of Gale Crater, Rock on! |
Geomorphology of Gale Crater, Rock on! |
Sep 26 2012, 10:22 PM
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 3516 Joined: 4-November 05 From: North Wales Member No.: 542 |
I'd like a discussion thread about the geology detatched from the time limits of current MSL threads. We had a 'Geomorphology of Cape York' thread that attracted a lot of interesting posts. How about 'Geomorphology of Gale Crater'? I have one or two ideas but many more questions, and I'd like to post them in a longer-running thread away from the day to day imaging discussion. Any other takers?
For starters, does anybody have a contour map of this place like the one at Meridiani with 5m intervals? ADMIN: You have your wishes fulfilled on UMSF (sometimes) |
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Oct 16 2012, 02:30 AM
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Senior Member Group: Members Posts: 1465 Joined: 9-February 04 From: Columbus OH USA Member No.: 13 |
A paper from the MSL team to be delivered at the Geological Society of America conference in Charlotte next month talks about an area on Mt Sharp containing "boxwork" structures:
QUOTE Boxwork structures are mapped in a distinctive sedimentary layer exposed on Mount Sharp in shallow depressions about 700 m above Curiosity’s landing ellipse in Gale Crater. This layer, exposed over about 1 km2, is characterized by penetrative fracture networks expressed as ridges and separated by shallow depressions (2-10 m diameter) that are filled with dark windblown sand. Ridges are light-toned, averaging 4-5 m in width and sometimes marked by a thin dark strip (0-1.5 m across) in the center of the ridge. These are interpreted as large-scale boxwork structures, formed when saturated groundwater flowed through the fractured host rock and crystals precipitated within fractures and pores in the host rock, making the fractures more resistant to weathering than unaltered host rock. After weathering, the fracture fills stand as topographically higher rims around eroded host rock. Curious to know where that is on the HiRISE imagery. Might it be this area in the large (what appears to be) outflow channel? Other ideas? -------------------- |
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