Global Distribution Of Serpentine On Mars
The distribution and origin of serpentine on Mars can provide insights into the planet’s aqueous history, habitability, and past climate.
In this study, we used dynamic aperture factor analysis/target transformation applied to 15,760 images from the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars, followed by validation with the radiance ratio method, to construct a map of Mg-serpentine deposits on Mars.
Although relatively rare, Mg-serpentine was detected in diverse geomorphic settings across Noachian and Hesperian-aged terrains in the southern highlands of Mars, implying that serpentinization was active on early Mars and that multiple formation mechanisms may be needed to explain its spatial distribution.
We also calculated the amount of H2 produced during the formation of the observed deposits and conclude that serpentinization was likely more widespread on Mars than indicated by the observed distribution.
Two new serpentine detections on Mars. a) Black outline represents HRL0000860C footprint overlain on a CTX image. Upper left inset shows the regional context on the THEMIS day IR mosaic. Black arrow points to the light-toned unit corresponding to chloride deposits (Glotch et al. 2010). b) and c) show the local geologic context of two serpentine detections (red polygons) on CTX. d) The average I/F (blue) and radiance (orange) ratio spectra of both pixel clusters showing the presence of a 2.12-µm absorption band plotted with laboratory spectra from the RELAB database (Milliken et al. 2021). e) FRS0003F22E footprint in black overlain on a CTX image. Upper-left inset shows the regional context on the THEMIS day IR mosaic. f) shows the local geologic context of the serpentine detection (red polygons). g) The average I/F (blue plot) and radiance (orange plot) ratio spectra of the detected pixels. — astro-ph.EP
A. Emran, J. D. Tarnas, K. M. Stack
Comments: 21 pages, 4 figures
Subjects: Earth and Planetary Astrophysics (astro-ph.EP)
Cite as: arXiv:2501.14085 [astro-ph.EP] (or arXiv:2501.14085v1 [astro-ph.EP] for this version)
https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2501.14085
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Journal reference: Geophysical Research Letters, 2025
Submission history
From: A. Emran
[v1] Thu, 23 Jan 2025 20:46:03 UTC (5,958 KB)
https://arxiv.org/abs/2501.14085
Astrobiology, Astrogeology,
