1. Distinct Carbonate Lithologies in Jezero Crater, Mars
- Author
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Allison M. Zastrow and Timothy D. Glotch
- Subjects
Atmospheres ,Lithology ,Planetary Atmospheres, Clouds, and Hazes ,Geochemistry ,Fluvial ,Mars ,Planets ,Atmospheric Composition and Structure ,engineering.material ,Planetary Geochemistry ,Remote Sensing ,chemistry.chemical_compound ,Planetary Sciences: Solar System Objects ,Impact crater ,Martian geology ,Research Letter ,Planetary Sciences: Astrobiology ,Planetary Sciences: Solid Surface Planets ,Planetary Sciences: Fluid Planets ,Mineralogy and Petrology ,Olivine ,Planetary Atmospheres ,Mars Exploration Program ,spectral analysis ,Planetary Mineralogy and Petrology ,Geophysics ,chemistry ,engineering ,General Earth and Planetary Sciences ,Carbonate rock ,Carbonate ,Aeolian processes ,Planetary Sciences: Comets and Small Bodies ,Geology ,Composition - Abstract
Jezero crater is the landing site for the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover. The Noachian‐aged crater has undergone several periods of fluvial and lacustrine activity and phyllosilicate‐ and carbonate‐bearing rocks were formed and emplaced as a result. It also contains a portion of the regional Nili Fossae olivine‐carbonate unit. In this work, we performed spectral mixture analysis of visible/near‐infrared hyperspectral imagery over Jezero. We modeled carbonate abundances up to ∼35% and identified three distinct units containing different carbonate phases. Our work also shows that the olivine in Jezero is predominantly restricted to aeolian deposits overlying the carbonate rocks. The diversity of carbonate phases in Jezero points to multiple periods of carbonate formation under varying conditions., Key Points Unmixing of near‐infrared spectra in Jezero crater suggests carbonate abundances up to ∼35% per pixelStrong olivine spectral signatures are correlated to sand deposits overlying light‐toned carbonate‐bearing rocksFe‐carbonate is the dominant phase throughout the study area; Mg‐carbonate is present along the Jezero paleolake rim
- Published
- 2021