Martian Geochemistry
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Scan day: 03 February 2014 UTC
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Description: Summarizes the geochemical results obtained by NASA's Mars Pathfinder mission. Includes plots of geochemical trends, and comparisons with earlier Viking mission data as well as with Earth geochemistry.
Mars Pathfinder - Science Results - Mineralogy and Geochemistry Mars Pathfinder Science Results The Alpha Proton X-Ray Spectrometer on the rover measured the compositions of nine rocks. The silicon content of some of the rocks is much higher than that of the martian meteorites, our only other samples of Mars. The martian meteorites are all mafic and ultramafic igneous rocks, volcanic and intrusive rocks that are relatively low in silicon and high in iron and magnesium. Such rocks would be expected to form by partial melting of the upper mantle of Mars. The melt rises up though the crust and solidifies at or near the surface. The mafic volcanic martian meteorites, referred to as basalts, are the most common rock on Earth and have also been found on the Moon. Based on the composition of the martian meteorites and the presence of plains and mountains that look like features produced by basaltic volcanism on Earth, geologists expected to find primarily basalts on Mars.
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| Page title: | Mars Pathfinder - Science Results - Mineralogy and Geochemistry |
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| IP-address: | 54.230.98.146 |
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