The “blueberry” rocks found on Mars could contain water and are similar to samples of hydrohematite found on Earth in the 19th century, according to a study
- Hydrohematite is light on iron, but has hydroxyl that translates into water stored in rocks.
- Scientists speculate that this is the type of pebble rock found on Mars
- Pebble rocks, or “blueberries”, were identified by NASA’s Curiosity in 2004 which labeled it as a hematite rock, with a high iron content and no water.
- However, the study suggests that it was misidentified because the engine does not have the technology to identify hydrohematite.
- The study found that the rocks on Mars formed under the same conditions as those on Earth
- Hydrohematite is also red, which would explain the landscape of Mars
Rocks that have been collecting dust at the Smithsonian Institution since the 19th century may contain clues to finding water on Mars.
Scientists at Penn State University, who believe that Earth’s rock has properties similar to those on Mars called “blueberries,” have reexamined a hydrohematite, discovered by August Breithaupt, the most German miner in 1843.
Hydrohematite is light on iron, but has hydroxyl, a group of hydrogen and oxygen that translates into water stored in rocks.
The so-called “blueberries” on Mars were detected by NASA’s Curiosity in 2004 which identified them as hematite because it lacks the technology to identify hydrohematite.
Peter J. Heaney, professor of geosciences, Penn State, said in a statement, “On Earth, these spherical structures are hydrohematites, so it seems reasonable to me to speculate that the bright red pebbles on Mars are hydrohematites.”
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Scientists at Penn State University, who believe that Earth’s rock has properties similar to those on Mars called “blueberries,” have reexamined a hydrohematite, discovered by August Breithaupt, the most German miner in 1843. Hydrohematite is light on iron, but has hydroxially, a group of hydrogen and oxygen that translates into water stored in rocks.
The investigation began when Si Athena Chen, a doctoral student in geosciences at Heaney, obtained several samples of ancient rock that came with a label containing water.
Chen performed several tests on 19th-century rock, including infrared spectroscopy and synchrotron X-ray diffraction, a more sensitive and refined method than that used when Breithaupt first described the sample in 1843. time.
After work, Chen found that the minerals were low in iron and had hydroxyl that replaced some of the iron atoms.
“I was trying to see what the natural conditions were for forming iron oxides,” Chen said.
The so-called blueberries on Mars were detected by NASA’s Curiosity in 2004 which identified them as hematite, because it lacks the technology to identify hydrohematite.
“What were the temperatures and pH needed to crystallize these hydrated phases and could you find a way to synthesize them?”
He found that at temperatures below 300 degrees Fahrenheit, in an alkaline and aqueous environment, hydrohematite can precipitate forming sedimentary layers.
“Much of Mars’ surface apparently originated when the surface was wetter and iron oxides precipitated from that water, ”Heaney said.
“But the existence of hydrohematite on Mars is still speculative.”
Chen’s experiments found that natural hydrohematite contained 3.6% to 7.8% by weight of water.
“Mars is called a red planet because of its color, which comes from iron compounds in Martian dirt,” the team shared in a statement
Depending on the amount of hydrated iron ores found on Mars, researchers believe there could be a significant water supply.
“Mars is called a red planet because of its color, which comes from iron compounds in Martian dirt,” the team shared in a statement.
“The presence of hydrohematite on Mars would provide additional evidence that Mars was once an aqueous planet, and water is the only compound needed for all life forms on Earth.”