Greetings from Mars

diciembre 13, 2018

Greetings from Mars https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC0DhQwejST5dUk8ZhEfNQiWvaxuWPrrCfu-VSqdtGX6PAbWowQm4nAg5jLYw07yCRYe8JEZO0Vz5JqMqcGjh0rszFZi8-B_XS3zSHJ3q0f3rLWyV7eFrrKOJEmlkwZrCR-NEAoEOYBLE/w1200-h630-p-k-no-nu/PIA19912_fig1.jpg

Greetings from Mars

We had not talked about our Curiosity (NASA) for a long time. The rover follows the foot of the canyon in the foothills of Mount Sharp, specifically in a region covered with sandstone called Stimson Unit. Two weeks ago, the rover captured this image. It is surprising that on Mars we can find this kind of landscapes that seems to be taken from a Star Wars movie.

"Greetings from the crater Gale (Mars)"

In the foreground, about 3 kilometers away, we can see a long ridge full of hematite, an iron oxide mineral; beyond, there is a wavy plain rich in clay minerals; and a little further away, a multitude of rounded hills rich in sulfates. The changing mineralogy of the area suggests a dynamic environment on early Mars. But all the minerals in the area have something in common: exposure to water.

Drilling continues

More recently, on September 29, the rover made its fifth drilling since it is in Mount Sharp, eighth since it is on the Red Planet. This last drill, 65 mm deep, was made in a rock called "Big Sky" with the aim of analyzing the components of the Martian rock.

"At Big Sky we have found the ordinary sandstone rock we were looking for," said Ashwin Vasavada, mission scientist. "It also seems that the rock has been altered by fluids, probably groundwater, we are waiting to drill the next rock, compare the results and understand the changes that took place," he added.

Water is an increasingly recurrent theme on Mars. Each time there is greater evidence to prove its existence, both present and past. The search for signs of life in our neighbor planet goes through the detection of water, which is already achieved. Now, the objective is to characterize these waters to see how far they could sustain life.

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