Mineral Analysis of Martian Dunes

MINERAL ANALYSIS OF MARTIAN DUNESBy Savannah Bachman Mentor: Dr. Timothy Titus

Universe and planets

Minerals on Dunes • I used thermal infrared observations to

determine mineral compositions of six dune fields and their surroundings.

•Based off composition of sediment found in the dune and the surroundings, I tested the hypothesis that the sediment came from a localized source.

OutlineI. Thermal emissions and how to

interpret the spectraII. Processes used to collect data

I. JMARSII. TESIII. Speclib

III. AnalysisI. DaVinciII. Mineral composition

comparisonsIV. Conclusion

How Spectra works

Emis

sivi

ty

Wavenumber cm-1

Anorthoclase •Olivine Fo35•

Sun Roc

kStores heat energy

Radiates heat

Emits thermal radiance TE

S

Wavelength µm

Collects mineral spectrum

Individual spectra for minerals found on Mars

Mineral Spectral Library For this Study

USGS Dune DatabaseDune Selection6 dunes totalLarge dunesWithin equatorial region

Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) spectra

0°

60°

-60°

0° -180°

180°Java Mission-Planning and Analysis for Remote Sensing

JMARS&TES

Located: (311.625 E, -7.875)

Off the Dune: North

On Dune

Off Dune: South

CO2

Dune ID: 3124-080

Anorth

ocl...

Anorth

ite

Microc

line

Olivine

Fo35

Ensta

tite

Diopsid

e

Quartz

05

1015202530 On the

Dune

Off the Dune North

Off the Dune South

Comparison of mineral abundancesDaVinci

On the Dune

Off the Dune North

Off the Dune South

Olivine Fo35 36.01 38.85 36.21Microcline 18.7 19.93 18.53

Anorthoclase 12.26 13.11 11.91Andesine 11.92 8.91 10.97

Diopside 10.68 7.14 12.59

Enstatite 7.4 8.36 7.24

Quartz 2.95 3.7

Mineral Composition Comparison

Analysis of Mineral AbundanceThree dune fields contain almost no variance in mineral abundance from their surroundingsTwo dune fields contain different amounts of olivine and anorthoclaseOne dune field contains different amounts of anorthoclase

-5 5 15 25 35 45 55 65-10

0

10

20

30

40

50

Dune 1 On

Dune 2 On

Dune 3 On

Dune 4 On

Dune 5 On

Dune 6 On

Anorthoclase(Point %)

Oliv

ine

Fo35

(Poi

nt %

)Analysis On Dune

Local

Local

Non-LocalUndetermined

Local

ConclusionFour dune fields

have similar mineral amounts to their surroundings which is indicative of a local sediment source

Two dune fields have different mineral amounts when compared to their surroundings which may suggest a non-localized source

Acknowledgments

Dr. Timothy TitusChris Edwards, ASUChristopher Mount, NAURose HaywardASUNASA Space Grant

Thank you.