Antarctic Guide to Martian Weathering--- Soils in the Antarctic Dry Valleys contain traces of silicate alteration products and secondary salts much like those found in Martian meteorites.
Field sites in the Antarctic Dry Valleys serve as useful (and relatively nearby) analogs to the surface of Mars for several reasons that have been known since the Viking Lander experiments. The environmental similarities include: low mean temperatures; strong, desiccating winds; lack of rain; sparse...
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| Format: | Text |
| Language: | English |
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2005
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| Online Access: | http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.694.163 http://www.psrd.hawaii.edu/April05/PSRD-DryValleysSoils.pdf |
| Summary: | Field sites in the Antarctic Dry Valleys serve as useful (and relatively nearby) analogs to the surface of Mars for several reasons that have been known since the Viking Lander experiments. The environmental similarities include: low mean temperatures; strong, desiccating winds; lack of rain; sparse snowfall; sublimation; diurnal freeze-thaw cycles; low humidity; high solar radiation; and the presence of salts in the soils. A team of planetary scientists have recently reexamined earlier work on cold Antarctic desert soils to better understand the Martian near-surface environment and weathering processes. The ongoing studies by Susan Wentworth (ERC/ESCG at Johnson Space Center), Everett Gibson and David McKay (Johnson Space Center), and Michael Velbel (Michigan State University) include Martian meteorites, most of which contain traces of aqueous weathering products. They report that these meteorite weathering features, which are of Martian origin, are remarkably similar in composition, nature, and abundance to those found in the Antarctic Dry Valleys soils, suggesting the weathering processes are also similar. |
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