Tuesday, November 18, 2008

UA evidence for massive paleo-ocean on Mars


More amazing Mars news out of the University of Arizona.

UA planetary geologist James Dohm and co-authors report that the Gamma Ray Spectrometer onboard NASA's Mars Odyssey found evidence that oceans once covered about a third of ancient Mars.

The instrument's data on potassium, thorium, and iron, indicates where the elements would have been eroded from the highlands and deposited in a large sea early in the planet's history.

The map at right shows high potassium concentrations in yellow and red in lowlands, indicating possible ocean basins. [credit, Univ. of Arizona]

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