Chemical variations in Yellowknife Bay formation sedimentary rocks analyzed by ChemCam on board the Curiosity rover on Mars

Nicolas Mangold; Olivier Forni; G. Dromart; K.M. Stack; Roger C. Wiens; Olivier Gasnault; Dawn Y. Sumner; Marion Nachon; Pierre-Yves Meslin; Ryan B. Anderson; Bruce Barraclough; J.F. Bell III; G. Berger; D.L. Blaney; J.C. Bridges; F. Calef; Brian R. Clark; Samuel M. Clegg; Agnès Cousin; L. Edgar; Kenneth S. Edgett; B.L. Ehlmann; Cecile Fabre; M. Fisk; John P. Grotzinger; S.C. Gupta; Kenneth E. Herkenhoff; J.A. Hurowitz; J. R. Johnson; Linda C. Kah; Nina L. Lanza; Jeremie Lasue; S. Le Mouélic; Eric Lewin; Michael Malin; Scott M. McLennan; S. Maurice; Noureddine Melikechi; Alissa Mezzacappa; Ralph E. Milliken; H.L. Newsome; A. Ollila; Scott K. Rowland; Violaine Sautter; M.E. Schmidt; S. Schroder; C. D'Uston; Dave Vaniman; R. A. Williams

doi:10.1002/2014JE004681

Chemical variations in Yellowknife Bay formation sedimentary rocks analyzed by ChemCam on board the Curiosity rover on Mars

Journal of Geophysical Research E: Planets

By: Nicolas Mangold, Olivier Forni, G. Dromart, K.M. Stack, Roger C. Wiens, Olivier Gasnault, Dawn Y. Sumner, Marion Nachon, Pierre-Yves Meslin, Ryan B. Anderson, Bruce Barraclough, J.F. Bell III, G. Berger, D.L. Blaney, J.C. Bridges, F. Calef, Brian R. Clark, Samuel M. Clegg, Agnès Cousin, L. Edgar, Kenneth S. Edgett, B.L. Ehlmann, Cecile Fabre, M. Fisk, John P. Grotzinger, S.C. Gupta, Kenneth E. Herkenhoff, J.A. Hurowitz, J. R. Johnson, Linda C. Kah, Nina L. Lanza, Jeremie Lasue, S. Le Mouélic, Eric Lewin, Michael Malin, Scott M. McLennan, S. Maurice, Noureddine Melikechi, Alissa Mezzacappa, Ralph E. Milliken, H.L. Newsome, A. Ollila, Scott K. Rowland, Violaine Sautter, M.E. Schmidt, S. Schroder, C. D'Uston, Dave Vaniman, and R. A. Williams

https://doi.org/10.1002/2014JE004681

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Abstract

The Yellowknife Bay formation represents a ~5 m thick stratigraphic section of lithified fluvial and lacustrine sediments analyzed by the Curiosity rover in Gale crater, Mars. Previous works have mainly focused on the mudstones that were drilled by the rover at two locations. The present study focuses on the sedimentary rocks stratigraphically above the mudstones by studying their chemical variations in parallel with rock textures. Results show that differences in composition correlate with textures and both manifest subtle but significant variations through the stratigraphic column. Though the chemistry of the sediments does not vary much in the lower part of the stratigraphy, the variations in alkali elements indicate variations in the source material and/or physical sorting, as shown by the identification of alkali feldspars. The sandstones contain similar relative proportions of hydrogen to the mudstones below, suggesting the presence of hydrous minerals that may have contributed to their cementation. Slight variations in magnesium correlate with changes in textures suggesting that diagenesis through cementation and dissolution modified the initial rock composition and texture simultaneously. The upper part of the stratigraphy (~1 m thick) displays rocks with different compositions suggesting a strong change in the depositional system. The presence of float rocks with similar compositions found along the rover traverse suggests that some of these outcrops extend further away in the nearby hummocky plains.

Additional publication details
Publication type	Article
Publication Subtype	Journal Article
Title	Chemical variations in Yellowknife Bay formation sedimentary rocks analyzed by ChemCam on board the Curiosity rover on Mars
Series title	Journal of Geophysical Research E: Planets
DOI	10.1002/2014JE004681
Volume	120
Issue	3
Year Published	2015
Language	English
Publisher	American Geophysical Union
Publisher location	Richmond, VA
Contributing office(s)	Astrogeology Science Center
Description	31 p.
First page	452
Last page	482
Online Only (Y/N)	N
Additional Online Files (Y/N)	N
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