1 / 11

Application of TES Spectral Data to Rock Varnish

Application of TES Spectral Data to Rock Varnish. Taylor Feiereisel Mentors: Shawn Wright Laurie Rogers. Overview:. Orbital TES thermal infrared (TIR) spectral data concludes two different types of rock surfaces on Mars in the low albedo regions of Mars Surface Type I (STI) = Basalt

isabella-walsh
Download Presentation

Application of TES Spectral Data to Rock Varnish

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Application of TES Spectral Data to Rock Varnish Taylor Feiereisel Mentors: Shawn Wright Laurie Rogers

  2. Overview: • Orbital TES thermal infrared (TIR) spectral data concludes two different types of rock surfaces on Mars in the low albedo regions of Mars • Surface Type I (STI) = Basalt • Surface Type II (STII) = ??? • Clay-manganiferous rock coatings called desert varnish could manipulate the TES TIR STII spectral data. • Approach: Laboratory Spectroscopy • Results and Implications • Acknowledgements

  3. Mars TIR History: Mars Global Surveyor Mars Odyssey 2001 THEMIS TES

  4. STI and STII Sites Northern Hemisphere Sources: Wyatt and McSween, 2002; Hamilton et al., 2003 Southern Hemisphere

  5. Rock Coatings: • Rock Coatings are additional sub aerial layers on a rock derived through multiple biochemical and geomorphologic processes. • Weathering a rock will breakdown and decay the lithosphere into products that are in equilibrium with conditions at or near the earth’s (rock’s) surface. Weathering processes also forms new compounds. • Desert Varnishes are dark rock coatings that are composed of clay minerals cemented to the underlying rock by oxides of Mn, Fe, or both. Dorn, Rock Coatings, 1998

  6. Approach: • Collected rock samples from around the world in arid climates. • Multiple spectral readings of fresh and desert varnished sides • SW U.S., India, Argentina • Obtained TIR emission spectroscopy • Compare terrestrial samples to TES STII spectral readings.

  7. Results: • Fresh Surfaces were primarily basalt and obsidian • Desert Varnishes were the same on various fresh surfaces

  8. Results: • The main component of desert varnish is likely the clay Montmorillonite

  9. Results: • Varnishes vary considerably within the individual rocks and within the same varnish.

  10. Conclusions: • Desert varnishes uses the surrounding environment for material to create the layer • Surface Type II rocks on Mars are not completely varnished by clay materials

  11. Acknowledgements RATW and MSFF NASA Space Grant

More Related