February 9:
Layered Rocks near Mount Sharp on Mars
Image Credit:
NASA,
JPL-Caltech,
MSSS
Explanation:
What caused these Martian rocks to be layered?
The leading hypothesis is an
ancient Martian lake
that kept evaporating and refilling over 10 million years -- but has
now remained dry and empty of water for billions of years.
The featured image,
taken last November by the
robotic Curiosity rover,
shows one-meter wide Whale Rock which is part of the
Pahrump Hills outcrop at the base of
Mount Sharp.
Also evident in the image is
cross-bedding -- rock with angled layers -- which were likely facilitated by
waves of sand.
Curiosity continues to find many layered
rocks like this as it continues to roll around and up 5.5-km high
Mount Sharp.
Looks like shale. If that's the case, in 20 years, somebody will be proposing fracking on Mars. That's no crazier than mining asteroids.
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