New discoveries from NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover have shed light on the planet’s ancient atmosphere and evolution. Researchers had long believed that Mars once had a thick, carbon dioxide-rich atmosphere and liquid water on its surface. The presence of carbonate minerals, such as siderite, in rocks beneath Mount Sharp in Gale Crater has provided crucial evidence to support this theory.
The Curiosity rover drills into the Martian subsurface, collecting powdered rock samples that are analyzed using X-ray diffraction. This analysis revealed the presence of siderite, an iron carbonate mineral, within the sulfate-rich rocky layers of Mount Sharp. According to Benjamin Tutolo, associate professor at the University of Calgary and lead author of the paper, this discovery represents a “surprising and important breakthrough” in understanding Mars’ geologic and atmospheric evolution.
The presence of carbonate minerals suggests that they may be masked by other minerals in near-infrared satellite analysis. If other sulfate-rich layers across Mars also contain carbonates, it could indicate that the planet’s atmosphere was not as depleted of carbon dioxide as previously thought. This discovery has significant implications for understanding Mars’ early history and its transformation over time.
The Curiosity rover is part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program and was built by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Future missions or analyses of other sulfate-rich areas on Mars could confirm these findings and provide further insights into the planet’s evolution.
Source: https://www.nasa.gov/centers-and-facilities/ames/nasas-curiosity-rover-may-have-solved-mars-missing-carbonate-mystery