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Nanophase Carbonates on Mars: Implications for Carbonate Formation and Habitability
| Content Provider | Semantic Scholar |
|---|---|
| Author | Archer, Paul Douglas Lauer, Howard V. Ming, Douglas W. Niles, Paul B. Morris, Richard V. Rampe, Elizabeth B. Sutter, Brad |
| Copyright Year | 2014 |
| Abstract | Despite having an atmosphere composed primarily of CO2 and evidence for abundant water in the past, carbonate minerals have only been discovered in small amounts in martian dust [1], in outcrops of very limited extent [2, 3], in soils in the Northern Plains (the landing site of the 2007 Phoenix Mars Scout Mission) [4] and may have recently been detected in aeolian material and drilled and powdered sedimentary rock in Gale Crater (the Mars Science Laboratory [MSL] landing site) [5]. Thermal analysis of martian soils by instruments on Phoenix and MSL has demonstrated a release of CO2 at temperatures as low as 250-300 °C, much lower than the traditional decomposition temperatures of calcium or magnesium carbonates. Thermal decomposition temperature can depend on a number of factors such as instrument pressure and ramp rate, and sample particle size [6]. However, if the CO2 released at low temperatures is from carbonates, small particle size is the only effect that could have such a large impact on decomposition temperature, implying the presence of extremely fine-grained (i.e., “nanophase” or clay-sized) carbonates. |
| File Format | PDF HTM / HTML |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/20140003558.pdf |
| Language | English |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
