Space
Nili Fossae: Mar's Landing Site Is Arrayed With Fantastic Colors, Blue Color Dominates
Ellaine Hannah
First Posted: May 11, 2016 05:00 AM EDT
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) reveals that Nili Fossae region, a possible landing site in Mars, have the most colorful spots on the Red Planet. It shows green, blue and red patches, as shown in the photos taken by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO).
NASA confirmed that red is not only the color of Mars. There is an array of colors under Mar's bedrock. The blue dominates the part of the landing. This is due to "homogenized dust." These fantastic colors of the Nili Fossae are credited to the rich geologic history of the area.
The Omega spectrometer on Mars Express and the CRISM spectrometer on MRO discovered that the Nili Fossae region of the Red Planet is one of the largest exposures of clay minerals. The dark blue regions are basaltic in composition. This includes the sand-sized material that bounds around in the wind to form dunes. Basalt is the usual type of volcanic rock on the planet Earth and other terrestrial planets.
The areas that are covered by small-scale fractures with a variety of colors are the clay-rich materials. These have oxygen and hydrogen within their mineral structures. They can also preserve organic materials. It is interesting to study these deposits to comprehend past environments that might support life.
Mars Science Laboratory stated that the impact caused the Martian surface to deform. They cited that the region has one of the largest, most diverse exposures of clay materials. Scientists are also looking at the possibility of any life form in the presence of water on the surface of the Red Planet.
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First Posted: May 11, 2016 05:00 AM EDT
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) reveals that Nili Fossae region, a possible landing site in Mars, have the most colorful spots on the Red Planet. It shows green, blue and red patches, as shown in the photos taken by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO).
NASA confirmed that red is not only the color of Mars. There is an array of colors under Mar's bedrock. The blue dominates the part of the landing. This is due to "homogenized dust." These fantastic colors of the Nili Fossae are credited to the rich geologic history of the area.
The Omega spectrometer on Mars Express and the CRISM spectrometer on MRO discovered that the Nili Fossae region of the Red Planet is one of the largest exposures of clay minerals. The dark blue regions are basaltic in composition. This includes the sand-sized material that bounds around in the wind to form dunes. Basalt is the usual type of volcanic rock on the planet Earth and other terrestrial planets.
The areas that are covered by small-scale fractures with a variety of colors are the clay-rich materials. These have oxygen and hydrogen within their mineral structures. They can also preserve organic materials. It is interesting to study these deposits to comprehend past environments that might support life.
Mars Science Laboratory stated that the impact caused the Martian surface to deform. They cited that the region has one of the largest, most diverse exposures of clay materials. Scientists are also looking at the possibility of any life form in the presence of water on the surface of the Red Planet.
See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone