Evidence of a Water Soaked Past

This navigation camera image taken by Opportunity on sol 36, March 1, 2004 PST,
shows the layered rocks of the El Capitan area and the two holes made 
by the rock
abrasion tool, giving scientists a deeper peek into the layers and 
revealed the exciting
chemical evidence that water once soaked this part of the red planet.

Scientists used the microscopic imager and two spectrometers to look 
at the details of the
freshly exposed, clean surfaces created by the rock abrasion tool. 
Seeing beyond the veil
of dust and coatings on the surface of the rock, scientists got the 
best views of the
chemical composition of the areas and discovered that the rocks are 
made up of types of
sulfate that could have only been created by interaction between 
water and the martian
surface.

The chemical make-up of the two holes is slightly different, giving 
an inkling into the
geologic history of this area. The history inferred from these 
differences may help to
explain the origin of the granular hematite found outside of the crater.

The sulfates and the kind of chemical composition of the rocks in 
this location on Mars
also occur on Earth, but only rarely.  In places like Rio Tinto, 
Spain, where similar
minerals are forming today, microorganisms live and thrive.

Analyzing these two clean surfaces created by the rock abrasion tool, 
proves that Mars
had interactions between water and rock over extended amounts of 
time.  What sustains
life on Earth is extended interaction between water and the 
environment.  The fact that
scientists have now found evidence of water and rock interacting for 
extended amounts of
time does not necessarily mean that life did develop on Mars, but it 
does bring the
possibility one step closer to reality.

Opportunity's wheel tracks can be seen in the bottom left and right 
sides of this image.
The tracks extend to the center of the image, showing where 
Opportunity sat during the
use of the instruments on its robotic arm.

Image Credit:  NASA/JPL

APPROVED BY: Andy Knoll 626/584-5948 and Larry Soderblom, SOWG chair

CAPTION WRITER:  Christine Johnson 818/667-7853 cell

RELEASE DATE:  March 3, 2004

IMAGE FILE NAME: xpe_el_cap_2_holes.jpg

SOURCE FILE NAME(S): Nav Cam - 1N131386579EFF0510P1937R0M1

SUMMARY INFORMATION:  Navigation Camera of El Capitan Post 2 Rats

NAME OF SUBMITTER: Andy Knoll

INSTITUTION:  Harvard

THEME/TEAM/GROUP:  Long Term Planning

SOL OF OBSERVATION:  36

EARTH DATE OF OBSERVATION:  March 1, 2004

TITLE OF IMAGE: Evidence of a Water Soaked Past

CAPTION:  Above