Aram Chaos, A Hematite Region of Many Differences
Mars is approximately four million years old, considered to be about the same age as Earth and the rest of our solar system. It was during this time that the basin Aram Chaos was formed from a large impact asteroid, resulting from a hit in the area we now call western Arabia Terra. The basin is 175 miles wide, and today is filled with drifting sediments, as in many years of its past—dust and sand that have been brought in by the Martian winds, along with volcanic ash.
In the earlier days of the mysterious red planet, present findings have shown us that its climate was much wetter than now. Over time, as the water filled the deep crater it saturated it and the water began to deepen. This eventually caused water in the crater to freeze as the climate on Mars shifted and cooled. Instead of staying frozen, something triggered the ground ice to melt.
A circular-shaped structure, Aram Chaos is located between Ares Vallis and Aureum Chaos, one of the many Martian regions that are east of Valles Marineris. What is seen through the ESA’s Mars Express spacecraft (HRSC) regarding this crater is a very chaotic terrain, consisting of large-scale remnant massifs and large relief masses that are said to have weathered as a block. Beautiful yet isolated, the scenery is extremely interesting because of its valleys and the Chryse basin, the type of terrain it offers, and the eastern part of Valles Marineris. The relationship between the eastern Valles Marineris is important as it is thought to be the source of the water or ice that created the valleys extending into Chryse Planitia.
Data from NASA’s Mars Global Surveyor orbiter found that Aram Chaos revealed a huge expanse of the iron-ioxide mineral hermatite, a mineral associated with water, which instantly attracted the scientists of the world. Considered the second-largest hematite deposite area on Mars, the rover Opportunity found an abundant hematite in the famous Mars’ “blueberries,” considered to be hematite-rich nuggets.
This entry was posted on Sunday, March 16th, 2008 at 5:42 am and is filed under Mission History, Mission Objectives, Space Agency News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
