French Scientists find rare Martian Meteorite - important discovery

Rxke · 2004-01-03 16:00:58

Palomar · 2004-01-03 16:18:15

*Cool! I couldn't help remembering all the times I went rock hunting as a kid (big rock collection)...I wonder if there was ever a chance I held a bit of Mars in my hand without knowing it.

I once found a really vivid, well perserved fossil (seashell).

By the way, Rik...what is your avatar?

--Cindy

Rxke · 2004-01-03 16:56:19

errr... My avatar? just 2 minutes scanning and filtering through photoshop of a scribbled 'Rxke' with a dot on the 'x' ... (its pronounced "Rick-skU" (short u, like in dust) just a diminutive of my name... written a bit awkward... should be Rikske

did it after a discussion on newyear's eve with friends from a band i used to play in... But i think it's a bit too egocentric... Another nickname of mine is Calimero (used by some collegue students), but that's copyrighted stuff, so i won't use that....

Rxke · 2004-01-03 16:59:52

Anyhow... That article raises some eyebrows with me: they have a lot of stuff, but no money to get it examined????

That's really, really sad...

Rxke · 2004-01-21 10:58:37

It's been confirmed!
[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3414143.stm]BBC

Strange, now all of a sudden this in the headlines... Wonder how that's possible

Palomar · 2004-01-21 11:08:17

It's been confirmed!
[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3414143.stm]BBC
Strange, now all of a sudden this in the headlines... Wonder how that's possible

*Cool! Very nice specimens, wow. Those folks have found a total of 6 Marsian rocks to date...that's enviable.

I think this is an extremely wise idea:

"It was picked up by a local worker on an isolated plateau in the mountains at --->a location which is now being kept secret because of fears it may be spoilt by visitors.<---"

--Cindy

dickbill · 2004-01-21 11:48:21

It's been confirmed!
[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3414143.stm]BBC
Strange, now all of a sudden this in the headlines... Wonder how that's possible

They shouldn't touch the stone like that without gloves but whatever.
I am puzzled by the white veins in the rock. It looks like quartz.
Are veins of quartz supposed to happens in a magmatic rock ? I mean in veins rather than cristals.

Shaun Barrett · 2004-01-24 06:39:12

Hi Dickbill!
I'm not sure whether the rock has veins of quartz in it or not but I don't think quartz veins are volcanic artifacts - at least not directly.

I did a bit of googling because I, like you, am interested in the origin and history of Mars rocks. Obviously, such data is important for understanding the conditions which prevailed on Mars in the past and, by extrapolation, for understanding the possible nature of the crust today.
The website is a Question-and-Answer kind of site, dealing with geology, and the information I've taken from it appears in the answer to the second question on the page.
If you're interested in checking it out, [http://rockhoundingar.com/askmikey/askMgold.html]CLICK HERE.

But the key points are these:-
" ... quartz veins form from hydrothermal (hot water) solutions."
Apparently, the quartz is deposited " ... from the fluid in pre-existing fractures in a host rock, usually sandstone or shale."

At the very least, even if the white inclusions aren't quartz, this rock is a maximum of 1.3 billion years old and that's another piece of evidence that Mars was still hot inside at that time.
Everybody is keen to assume that Mars' small size necessarily means it lost its internal heat early in its history. But this rock was created by volcanism at least 3.3 billion years after Mars formed!
Not a bad performance for a burnt out cinder of a planet!!
:;):

dickbill · 2004-01-26 09:19:50

But the key points are these:-
" ... quartz veins form from hydrothermal (hot water) solutions."
Apparently, the quartz is deposited " ... from the fluid in pre-existing fractures in a host rock, usually sandstone or shale."

Hi Shaun, yes, that's what I thought. Mars magma has undergone a significative water degasage during its volcanic history, but not complete from what I remember I've read. So there would be a lot of water left in the deep martian rocks.

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#1 2004-01-03 16:00:58

Re: French Scientists find rare Martian Meteorite - important discovery

#2 2004-01-03 16:18:15

Re: French Scientists find rare Martian Meteorite - important discovery

#3 2004-01-03 16:56:19

Re: French Scientists find rare Martian Meteorite - important discovery

#4 2004-01-03 16:59:52

Re: French Scientists find rare Martian Meteorite - important discovery

#5 2004-01-21 10:58:37

Re: French Scientists find rare Martian Meteorite - important discovery

#6 2004-01-21 11:08:17

Re: French Scientists find rare Martian Meteorite - important discovery

#7 2004-01-21 11:48:21

Re: French Scientists find rare Martian Meteorite - important discovery

#8 2004-01-24 06:39:12

Re: French Scientists find rare Martian Meteorite - important discovery

#9 2004-01-26 09:19:50

Re: French Scientists find rare Martian Meteorite - important discovery

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