This spectrum, taken by the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit's Moessbauer spectrometer, shows the presence of an iron-bearing mineral called goethite in a rock called "Clovis" in the "Columbia Hills" of Mars. Goethite contains water in the form of hydroxyl as a part of its structure. By identifying this mineral, the examination of Clovis produced strong evidence for past water activity in the area that Spirit is exploring.
Name | Value | Additional Values |
---|---|---|
Target | Mars | |
System | ||
Target Type | Planet | |
Mission | Mars Exploration Rover (MER) | |
Instrument Host | Spirit (MER-A) | |
Host Type | Rover | |
Instrument | Moessbauer Spectrometer (MB) | |
Detector | ||
Extra Keywords | Color, Water | |
Acquisition Date | ||
Release Date | 2004-12-13 | |
Date in Caption | ||
Image Credit | NASA/JPL/University of Mainz | |
Source | photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA07104 | |
Identifier | PIA07104 |