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Identification, Distribution and Possible Origins of Sulfates in Capri Chasma Identification, distribution and possible origins of sulfates in Capri Chasma (Mars), inferred from CRISM data Jessica Flahaut, Cathy Quantin, Pascal Allemand, Pierre Thomas, Laetitia Le Deit To cite this version: Jessica Flahaut, Cathy Quantin, Pascal Allemand, Pierre Thomas, Laetitia Le Deit. Identification, dis- tribution and possible origins of sulfates in Capri Chasma (Mars), inferred from CRISM data. Journal of Geophysical Research. Planets, Wiley-Blackwell, 2010, 115, pp.E11007. 10.1029/2009JE003566. hal-00672310 HAL Id: hal-00672310 https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00672310 Submitted on 21 Feb 2012 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH, VOL. 115, E11007, doi:10.1029/2009JE003566, 2010 Identification, distribution and possible origins of sulfates in Capri Chasma (Mars), inferred from CRISM data Jessica Flahaut,1,2,3 Cathy Quantin,1,2,4 Pascal Allemand,1,2,4 Pierre Thomas,1,2,3 and Laetitia Le Deit5 Received 24 December 2009; revised 13 May 2010; accepted 21 June 2010; published 23 November 2010. [1] CRISM is a hyperspectral imager onboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO; NASA, 2005) which has been acquiring data since November 2006 and has targeted hydrated minerals previously detected by OMEGA (Mars Express; ESA, 2003). The present study focuses on hydrated minerals detected with CRISM at high spatial resolution in the vicinity of Capri Chasma, a canyon of the Valles Marineris system. CRISM data were processed and coupled with MRO and other spacecraft data, in particular HiRiSE (High Resolution Science Experiment, MRO) images. Detections revealed sulfates in abundance in Capri, especially linked to the interior layered deposits (ILD) that lie in the central part of the chasma. Both monohydrated and polyhydrated sulfates are found at different elevations and are associated with different layers. Monohydrated sulfates are widely detected over the massive light‐toned cliffs of the ILD, whereas polyhydrated sulfates seem to form a basal and a top layer associated with lower‐albedo deposits in flatter areas. Hydrated silicates (phyllosilicates or opaline silica) have also been detected very locally on two mounds about a few hundred meters in diameter at the bottom of the ILD cliffs. We suggest some formation models of these minerals that are consistent with our observations. Citation: Flahaut, J., C. Quantin, P. Allemand, P. Thomas, and L. Le Deit (2010), Identification, distribution and possible origins of sulfates in Capri Chasma (Mars), inferred from CRISM data, J. Geophys. Res., 115, E11007, doi:10.1029/2009JE003566. 1. Introduction Hesperian, marked by a change from alkaline to acidic pH conditions and a transition from a wetter to a drier envi- [2] Sulfates were discovered by the spectral imager ronment [Bibring et al., 2006]. Observations obtained with OMEGA (Observatoire pour la Minéralogie, l’Eau, les the imaging spectrometer CRISM (the Compact Reconnais- Glaces et l’Activité), onboard Mars Express, at various sance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars) onboard the MRO locations on Mars [Gendrin et al., 2005]. Sulfates are (Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter) spacecraft enabled us to abundant in the Valles Marineris area, near the northern refine the distribution and mineralogical composition of the cap in Utopia Planitia, and locally in the plains of Terra hydrated minerals previously detected by OMEGA. With Meridiani [Bibring et al., 2006]. They have also been dis- 544 channels acquiring images at 6.55 nm/channel between covered in situ by the two Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit 0.362 and 3.92 mm in targeted mode, CRISM can resolve and Opportunity, in Gusev Crater and Meridiani Planum many diagnostic mineral features. Its spatial resolution ranges [Squyres et al., 2004; Grotzinger et al., 2005; Wang et al., from 18 to 36 m per pixel in hyperspectral mode, which is 2006]. In all these locations, they are detected in associa- ∼15 times better than OMEGA resolution [Murchie et al., tion with sedimentary deposits. Therefore, all these previous 2007]. CRISM is coaligned with other instruments on MRO; missions have proposed that the sulfate occurrence is CTX (Context Camera) and HiRiSE (High Resolution Imag- strongly linked with the water and climate history of Mars. ing Science Experiment) provide high‐resolution images (up to The sulfates have been interpreted to represent a global 25 cm per pixel) in conjunction with CRISM observations climate change on Mars from the Noachian through the [Malin et al., 2007; McEwen et al., 2007]. The association of all these data facilitates the precise identification of geological 1Université de Lyon, France. units and layers carrying a given spectral signature. 2Ecole Normal Supérieure de Lyon, Lyon, France. [3] In the equatorial area, sulfate signatures are correlated 3CNRS UMR 5570 Laboratoire de Sciences de la Terre, Villeurbanne, to light‐toned layered deposits, named interior layered France. deposits (ILD) [Gendrin et al., 2005]. ILD are massive, 4Université Lyon 1, Villeurbanne, France. 5Institute of Planetary Research, German Aerospace Center, Berlin, stratified, bright deposits often found in the central part of Germany. most of Valles Marineris chasmata [Lucchitta et al., 1994; Flahaut et al., 2010]. The present study focuses on these Copyright 2010 by the American Geophysical Union. deposits in a part of the Valles Marineris system called Capri 0148‐0227/10/2009JE003566 E11007 1of10 E11007 FLAHAUT ET AL.: SULFATES IN CAPRI CHASMA, MARS E11007 Chasma. Valles Marineris is an important area to study as it scene of Olympus Mons, scaled to the same column density represents the largest sulfate reservoir known on Mars and is of CO2 as in Mustard et al. [2008] and Pelkey et al. [2007]. associated with the enigmatic ILD. Indeed, the ILD origin Most of the mineralogical maps presented in this paper were and age are still unknown [Flahaut et al., 2010]. Proposed derived using the spectral summary parameters of Pelkey et al. genetic mechanisms for the ILD include mass wasting of [2007] after reducing noise using the CIRRUS destriping wallrocks [Nedell et al., 1987], aeolian [Peterson, 1981], and despiking function of CAT v6.5. For spectral features volcanic [Chapman and Tanaka,2001;Komatsu et al., 2004], unavailable in Pelkey et al.’s [2007] spectral summary or lacustrine [McCauley, 1978; Komatsu et al., 1993; Lucchitta parameters, we constructed our own spectral parameters to et al., 1994] processes. Edgett and Malin [2003] have sug- map band depth. CRISM band depth maps were then inte- gested that ILD could be exhumed remnants of preexisting grated to our GIS and projected over HiRiSE and CTX data. Noachian deposits. Various hypotheses for the formation of A list of all the CRISM and HiRiSE data used in this study sulfates in the area of Capri Chasma and in Valles Marineris is given in Table 1. in general, and their consequences on the ILD formation scenarios, are presented and discussed herein. 4. Results 4.1. Identification of Signatures 2. Geological Setting [6] The region of investigation is shown in Figure 1, [4] Valles Marineris is the largest canyon on the surface along with the distribution of hydrated minerals we have of Mars. Its troughs are thought to have formed by tectonic determined. All the CRISM hyperspectral data available as of extension and/or subsurface removal of groundwater. 12 January 2009 in Capri Chasma were processed. Table 1 [Schultz, 1991; Lucchitta et al., 1992; Peulvast and Masson, gathers all the CRISM observations which have relevant 1993; Tanaka, 1997; Weitz et al., 2003]. Capri Chasma, the signatures. Twenty CRISM observations are located over the largest of the Valles Marineris chasmata, is located at the ILD material. outlet of this canyon system as a continuation of Coprates [7] Hydrated minerals are identified with CRISM by Chasma and at the head of the outflow channels that spread investigating the overtones and combinations of funda- eastward [Flahaut et al., 2010]. Capri Chasma extends over mental vibrational absorption features in the 1.0–2.6 mm an area greater than 650 × 350 km, its floor has an average interval. Three hydrated phases have been detected in Capri elevation of −4000 m, and the surrounding plateaus are Chasma: monohydrated sulfates, polyhydrated sulfates, and above +2000 m. The central part of the canyon is filled with a hydrated silicate or silica (Figure 2). ILD which formed three mesas of variable sizes. Capri [8] Strong absorption bands at 2.1 and 2.4 mm have been Chasma’s ILD have been described in detail by Flahaut et found in 20 CRISM observations, including 19 targeted al. [2010]. The largest mesa, which is approximately 370 × over the ILD. The 2.4 mm feature is common to all sulfates ‐ 170 km wide and 3 km thick, exposes mainly massive light and characterizes the SO4 group vibrations within the toned material, where layering is difficult to observe. Lower structure (Figure 2). The shift of the bound water vibration albedo layers have also been observed at the bottom and at from 1.9 to 2.1 mm in these spectra indicates the presence of the top of the massive bright cliffs. All of the flat‐topped a single water molecule in the sulfate structure. The com- mounds are covered with a dark fine dust, referred to as a bination of these two absorption features is diagnostic of capping layer, and present in other chasmata. An interesting monohydrated sulfates [Gendrin et al., 2005; Bibring et al., feature in Capri Chasma is the association of layered deposits 2005].
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