Explanipedia

Characterization of ferric hydroxysulfate on Mars and implications of the geochemical environment supporting its formation Open

J. L. Bishop, Johannes M. Meusburger, C. M. Weitz, M. Parente, C. Gross , et al. · 2025

Unveiling Lunar Volcanic Complexity Beyond the Procellarum Kreep Terrane Open

G. A. Morgan, C. M. Weitz, D. C. Berman, E. R. Jawin, M. B. Russell , et al. · 2025

Motivation: The prevailing explanation for the dramatic asymmetry in lunar volcanism is that the Procellarum KREEP Terrane (PKT) represents a unique lunar province hosting a shallow reservoir of heat-producing elements. But is the story mo…

Hypotheses for the water and metal fluxes to the rippled Amapari Marker Band, Gale Crater, Mars Open

Edwin S. Kite, P. J. Gasda, Christopher Tino, C. M. Weitz, L. Thompson , et al. · 2025

Multispectral Properties of Rocks in Marker Band Valley and Evidence for an Alteration Unit Below the Amapari Marker Band at Gale Crater, Mars Open

W. H. Farrand, A. M. Eng, Allyson R. Trussell, J. R. Johnson, James F. Bell , et al. · 2025

The Mars Science Laboratory rover, Curiosity, has been examining strata from a period of Martian history where extensive clay mineral formation transitioned to sulfate mineral formation. This mineralogic change corresponds to a change from…

DEPOSITIONAL ENVIRONMENT AND PALEOCLIMATE IMPLICATIONS OF THE AMAPARI MARKER BAND WAVE RIPPLES Open

Claire A. Mondro, J. P. Grotzinger, Christopher M. Fedo, Michael P. Lamb, Sanjeev Gupta , et al. · 2025

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Depositional Environment of the Amapari Marker Band: Rising Water Levels Formed Kilometer‐Scale Lake in Gale Crater, Mars Open

Claire A. Mondro, J. Grotzinger, Christopher M. Fedo, Michael P. Lamb, Sanjeev Gupta , et al. · 2025

The Amapari Marker Band (AMB) is a layer within the Mount Sharp stratigraphy that has been mapped around the Gale crater in orbital images and was recently investigated up close by the Curiosity rover. Symmetric wave ripple marks within th…

Wave ripples formed in ancient, ice-free lakes in Gale crater, Mars Open

Claire A. Mondro, Christopher M. Fedo, J. P. Grotzinger, Michael P. Lamb, Sanjeev Gupta , et al. · 2025

Symmetrical wave ripples identified with NASA’s Curiosity rover in ancient lake deposits at Gale crater provide a key paleoclimate constraint for early Mars: At the time of ripple formation, climate conditions must have supported ice-free …

Geologic map of MTM −15032 and −20032 quadrangles, western Ladon basin, Mars Open

C. M. Weitz, Sharon A. Wilson, J. A. Grant, R. P. Irwin · 2025

An Orbital Comparison of a Late Mantling Unit on Aeolis Mons With Other Erosion‐Resistant Strata Explored by MSL in Gale Crater, Mars Open

Amanda Rudolph, B. Horgan, K. A. Bennett, C. M. Weitz, Rachel Y. Sheppard , et al. · 2024

Previous investigations along Curiosity 's traverse in Gale crater have explored the relationship between orbital and in situ observations. This work aims to better understand the geologic environment of units only observable from orbit an…

Characterizing the New Mineral FeSO4OH on Mars and Describing its Geochemical History and Association with Other Sulfates  Open

J. L. Bishop, Johannes M. Meusburger, Dominik Talla, C. M. Weitz, M. Parente , et al. · 2024

Sulfate minerals are an integral component of the martian surface and understanding the formation and alteration of these minerals provides clues about their geochemical environment. One sulfate phase in particular has been intriguing Mars…

THE AMAPARI MARKER BAND, GALE CRATER, MARS: METAL ENRICHMENTS AND POTENTIAL MECHANISMS OF FORMATION Open

P. J. Gasda, Edwin S. Kite, L. M. Thompson, Claire A. Mondro, W. E. Dietrich , et al. · 2024

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Characterization of aqueous alteration and formation of salty exposures at Ius Chasma, Mars Open

Kierra A. Wilk, J. L. Bishop, C. M. Weitz, M. Parente, Arun M. Saranathan , et al. · 2023

The high-resolution imaging science experiment (HiRISE) in the MRO extended science phases (2009–2023) Open

A. S. McEwen, Shane Byrne, C. J. Hansen, I. J. Daubar, S. Sutton , et al. · 2023

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has been orbiting Mars since 2006 and has acquired >80,000 HiRISE images with sub-meter resolution, contributing to over 2000 peer-reviewed publications, and has provided the data needed to enable safe surfa…

IMPLICATIONS OF THE LOCAL TOPOGRAPHY OF THE MARKER BAND CONTACT, GALE CRATER Open

W. E. Dietrich, A. B. Bryk, Edwin S. Kite, K. W. Lewis, S. Gupta , et al. · 2023

International audience

THE MARKER BAND IN GALE CRATER: A SYNTHESIS OF ORBITAL AND GROUND OBSERVATIONS Open

C. M. Weitz, K. W. Lewis, Edwin S. Kite, W. E. Dietrich, L. M. Thompson , et al. · 2023

International audience

‘HIGH’ BUT NOT SO DRY ON AEOLIS MONS: TRANSIENT LAKE SYSTEMS IN HESPERIAN DESERTS IN GALE CRATER. Open

Sanjeev Gupta, W. E. Dietrich, K. W. Lewis, Edwin S. Kite, C. A. Mondro , et al. · 2023

International audience

Geologic map of the source region of Shalbatana Vallis, Mars Open

D. C. Berman, J. A. P. Rodriguez, C. M. Weitz, D. A. Crown · 2023

First posted January 5, 2023 For additional information, contact: Astrogeology Science CenterU.S. Geological Survey2255 N. Gemini Dr.Flagstaff, AZ 86001 Xanthe Terra is a high-standing cratered plain located southeast of Lunae Planum and s…

Orbital and In Situ Investigation of the Bagnold Dunes and Sands of Forvie, Gale Crater, Mars Open

E. L. Moreland, R. E. Arvidson, R. V. Morris, T. Condus, M. N. Hughes , et al. · 2022

The Bagnold linear dune field investigated by Curiosity at Mount Desert Island (MDI) is north of the ∼5.5 km high Aeolis Mons mound in Gale crater. False‐color images (RGB: 2.496, 1.802, and 1.237 μm, respectively) generated from Mars Reco…

In Situ and Orbital Stratigraphic Characterization of the InSight Landing Site—A Type Example of a Regolith‐Covered Lava Plain on Mars Open

N. H. Warner, M. P. Golombek, V. Ansan, E. Marteau, N. R. Williams , et al. · 2022

The InSight lander rests on a regolith‐covered, Hesperian to Early Amazonian lava plain in Elysium Planitia within a ∼27‐m‐diameter, degraded impact crater called Homestead hollow . The km to cm‐scale stratigraphy beneath the lander is rel…

CRISM‐Based High Spatial Resolution Thermal Inertia Mapping Along Curiosity's Traverses in Gale Crater Open

John R. Christian, R. E. Arvidson, Joseph A. O’Sullivan, A. R. Vasavada, C. M. Weitz · 2022

Thermal inertia is a key summary property describing the thermophysical characteristics of geologic materials. Orbital estimates of thermal inertia are especially useful in conjunction with rover‐based observations to provide additional co…

Degradation at the InSight Landing Site, Homestead Hollow , Mars: Constraints From Rock Heights and Shapes Open

J. A. Grant, Sharon A. Wilson, M. P. Golombek, Allyson R. Trussell, N. H. Warner , et al. · 2022

Rock shapes and heights around the InSight lander are examined to refine the degradation history of the 27 m‐diameter Homestead hollow . Results document decreasing average exposed rock height and increasing percentage of rocks where heigh…

How to build a legacy of scientific leadership: the HR formula Open

J. E. Hammer, Jenni Barclay, Michael C. Carroll, Elizabeth Cottrell, L. T. Elkins‐Tanton , et al. · 2022

Degradation at the InSight Landing Site, Homestead Hollow, Mars: Constraints from Rock Heights and Shapes Open

J. A. Grant, Sharon A. Wilson, M. P. Golombek, Allyson R. Trussell, N. H. Warner , et al. · 2021

Earth and Space Science Open Archive This work has been accepted for publication in Earth and Space Science. Version of RecordESSOAr is a venue for early communication or feedback before peer review. Data may be preliminary. Learn more abo…

Vortex‐Dominated Aeolian Activity at InSight's Landing Site, Part 1: Multi‐Instrument Observations, Analysis, and Implications Open

Constantinos Charalambous, John McClean, Mariah Baker, W. T. Pike, M. P. Golombek , et al. · 2021

We report the aeolian changes observed in situ by NASA's InSight lander during the first 400 sols of operations: Granule creep, saltation, dust removal, and the formation of dark surface tracks. Aeolian changes are infrequent and sporadic.…

Vortex‐Dominated Aeolian Activity at InSight's Landing Site, Part 2: Local Meteorology, Transport Dynamics, and Model Analysis Open

Mariah Baker, Claire Newman, Constantinos Charalambous, M. P. Golombek, Aymeric Spiga , et al. · 2020

Geologic and climatic processes on modern‐day Mars are heavily influenced by aeolian surface activity, yet the relationship between atmospheric conditions and sediment mobilization is not well understood. The Interior Exploration using Sei…

Comparison of InSight Homestead Hollow to Hollows at the Spirit Landing Site Open

C. M. Weitz, J. A. Grant, M. P. Golombek, N. H. Warner, Ernst Hauber , et al. · 2020

The InSight spacecraft landed within an ~27‐m diameter highly degraded impact crater, informally called Homestead hollow, that was disturbed during landing by pulsed retrorockets that blew out dust and scoured loose sand around the landing…

An Impact Crater Origin for the InSight Landing Site at Homestead Hollow, Mars: Implications for Near Surface Stratigraphy, Surface Processes, and Erosion Rates Open

N. H. Warner, J. A. Grant, Sharon A. Wilson, M. P. Golombek, A. DeMott , et al. · 2020

The InSight mission to Mars landed within Homestead hollow on an Early Amazonian lava plain. The hollow is a 27‐m‐diameter, 0.3‐m‐deep quasi‐circular depression that shares morphologic and sedimentologic characteristics to degraded impact …

Aeolian Changes at the Insight Landing Site on Mars: Multi-instrument Observations Open

Constantinos Charalambous, Mariah Baker, M. P. Golombek, John McClean, W. T. Pike , et al. · 2020

The InSight (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) mission landed in western Elysium Planitia on November 26, 2018. Because of its stationary position and a multi-instrument package, InSigh…

Degradation of Homestead Hollow at the InSight Landing Site Based on the Distribution and Properties of Local Deposits Open

J. A. Grant, N. H. Warner, C. M. Weitz, M. P. Golombek, Sharon A. Wilson , et al. · 2020

The InSight mission landed its scientific payload in Homestead hollow , a quasi‐circular depression interpreted to be a highly degraded impact crater that is 27 m in diameter. The original pristine crater formed in a preexisting impact‐gen…

CRISM-based High Spatial Resolution Thermal Inertia Mapping along Curiosity's Traverses in Gale Crater Open

John R. Christian, R. E. Arvidson, Joseph A. O’Sullivan, A. R. Vasavada, C. M. Weitz · 2020

Thermal inertia was estimated at high resolution from a data set within Gale Crater collected by the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) instrument on board the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. This result was then ana…

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