In:
Geology, Geological Society of America, Vol. 49, No. 7 ( 2021-07-01), p. 842-846
Abstract:
The Curiosity rover is exploring Hesperian-aged stratigraphy in Gale crater, Mars, where a transition from clay-bearing units to a layered sulfate-bearing unit has been interpreted to represent a major environmental transition of unknown character. We present the first description of key facies in the sulfate-bearing unit, recently observed in the distance by the rover, and propose a model for changes in depositional environments. Our results indicate a transition from lacustrine mudstones into thick aeolian deposits, topped by a major deflation surface, above which strata show architectures likely diagnostic of a subaqueous environment. This model offers a reference example of a depositional sequence for layered sulfate-bearing strata, which have been identified from orbit in other locations globally. It differs from the idea of a monotonic Hesperian climate change into long-term aridity on Mars and instead implies a period characterized by multiple transitions between sustained drier and wetter climates.
Type of Medium:
Online Resource
ISSN:
0091-7613
,
1943-2682
Language:
English
Publisher:
Geological Society of America
Publication Date:
2021
detail.hit.zdb_id:
184929-3
detail.hit.zdb_id:
2041152-2
SSG:
13
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