Images from Curiosity have spotted some unexpected geology in Gale Crater.
Images from Curiosity have spotted some unexpected geology in Gale Crater.
A mosaic of high-definition images of Mount Sharp, the central peak dominating the landing site at Gale Crater, reveals tilted strata never before seen on Mars. The strata dip downwards at an angle close to that of the slope of the foothills of the 18,000-ft. tall mountain within which they are formed.
“The cool thing is the cameras have discovered something we were unaware of,” says mission chief scientist John Grotzinger. “This thing jumped out at us as being very different to what we expected,” he adds. Lying in the low-lying foothills beyond the dune field between the rover and the base of Mount Sharp, the inclined layers are a “spectacular feature” that could not be seen from orbit.
I think there are two reasons these tilted layers are puzzling scientists.
First, Mt. Sharp is the central peak of a crater, meaning that it formed practically instantly as a result of an impact. The layers however suggest a long geological process, laid down over eons. How then do you get slowly formed layers in an instantly formed crater peak?
Second, the incline suggests that some later geological event, either slow or fast, caused the layers to tilt after they were in place. It appears, however, that the scientists had not identified any evidence of such a geological event in their prior studies of Gale Crater. What was it?
All told, this surprising new data only proves one thing above all, that no one should ever be surprised by new data that comes down from space. The universe is a wonderful place, and it will always show us unexpected things, if we go and look.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
Images from Curiosity have spotted some unexpected geology in Gale Crater.
A mosaic of high-definition images of Mount Sharp, the central peak dominating the landing site at Gale Crater, reveals tilted strata never before seen on Mars. The strata dip downwards at an angle close to that of the slope of the foothills of the 18,000-ft. tall mountain within which they are formed.
“The cool thing is the cameras have discovered something we were unaware of,” says mission chief scientist John Grotzinger. “This thing jumped out at us as being very different to what we expected,” he adds. Lying in the low-lying foothills beyond the dune field between the rover and the base of Mount Sharp, the inclined layers are a “spectacular feature” that could not be seen from orbit.
I think there are two reasons these tilted layers are puzzling scientists.
First, Mt. Sharp is the central peak of a crater, meaning that it formed practically instantly as a result of an impact. The layers however suggest a long geological process, laid down over eons. How then do you get slowly formed layers in an instantly formed crater peak?
Second, the incline suggests that some later geological event, either slow or fast, caused the layers to tilt after they were in place. It appears, however, that the scientists had not identified any evidence of such a geological event in their prior studies of Gale Crater. What was it?
All told, this surprising new data only proves one thing above all, that no one should ever be surprised by new data that comes down from space. The universe is a wonderful place, and it will always show us unexpected things, if we go and look.
On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.
The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News
I’m re-reading Chaikin’s “A Man on the Moon”, and I just finished the chapter about Apollo 16 and Young and Duke’s exploration of Descartes. That mission, and this new find on Mars, show the value of finding what you DON’T expect. If we KNEW what was there, we wouldn’t need to explore it, would we? Go Curiosity!