PMID- 20950170
OWN - NLM
STAT- MEDLINE
DCOM- 20101214
LR  - 20171116
IS  - 1557-8070 (Electronic)
IS  - 1557-8070 (Linking)
VI  - 10
IP  - 7
DP  - 2010 Sep
TI  - The Mawrth Vallis region of Mars: A potential landing site for the Mars Science 
      Laboratory (MSL) mission.
PG  - 687-703
LID - 10.1089/ast.2010.0491 [doi]
AB  - The primary objective of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission, which will 
      launch in 2011, is to characterize the habitability of a site on Mars through 
      detailed analyses of the composition and geological context of surface materials. 
      Within the framework of established mission goals, we have evaluated the value of 
      a possible landing site in the Mawrth Vallis region of Mars that is targeted 
      directly on some of the most geologically and astrobiologically enticing 
      materials in the Solar System. The area around Mawrth Vallis contains a vast 
      (>1 x 10(6) km(2)) deposit of phyllosilicate-rich, ancient, layered rocks. A thick 
      (>150 m) stratigraphic section that exhibits spectral evidence for nontronite, 
      montmorillonite, amorphous silica, kaolinite, saponite, other smectite clay 
      minerals, ferrous mica, and sulfate minerals indicates a rich geological history 
      that may have included multiple aqueous environments. Because phyllosilicates are 
      strong indicators of ancient aqueous activity, and the preservation potential of 
      biosignatures within sedimentary clay deposits is high, martian phyllosilicate 
      deposits are desirable astrobiological targets. The proposed MSL landing site at 
      Mawrth Vallis is located directly on the largest and most phyllosilicate-rich 
      deposit on Mars and is therefore an excellent place to explore for evidence of 
      life or habitability.
FAU - Michalski, Joseph R
AU  - Michalski JR
AD  - Institut d'Astrophysique Spatiale, Universite Paris-Sud, Orsay, France. 
      Michalski@psi.edu
FAU - Jean-PierreBibring
AU  - Jean-PierreBibring
FAU - Poulet, Francois
AU  - Poulet F
FAU - Loizeau, Damien
AU  - Loizeau D
FAU - Mangold, Nicolas
AU  - Mangold N
FAU - Dobrea, Eldar Noe
AU  - Dobrea EN
FAU - Bishop, Janice L
AU  - Bishop JL
FAU - Wray, James J
AU  - Wray JJ
FAU - McKeown, Nancy K
AU  - McKeown NK
FAU - Parente, Mario
AU  - Parente M
FAU - Hauber, Ernst
AU  - Hauber E
FAU - Altieri, Francesca
AU  - Altieri F
FAU - Carrozzo, F Giacomo
AU  - Carrozzo FG
FAU - Niles, Paul B
AU  - Niles PB
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
PL  - United States
TA  - Astrobiology
JT  - Astrobiology
JID - 101088083
RN  - 0 (Silicates)
RN  - 0 (Soil)
SB  - IM
MH  - Cosmic Radiation
MH  - Evolution, Planetary
MH  - Exobiology
MH  - Geography
MH  - Geologic Sediments
MH  - Geological Phenomena
MH  - *Mars
MH  - Silicates/chemistry
MH  - Soil
MH  - Space Flight
MH  - Spacecraft
MH  - United States
MH  - United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration
EDAT- 2010/10/19 06:00
MHDA- 2010/12/16 06:00
CRDT- 2010/10/19 06:00
PHST- 2010/10/19 06:00 [entrez]
PHST- 2010/10/19 06:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2010/12/16 06:00 [medline]
AID - 10.1089/ast.2010.0491 [doi]
PST - ppublish
SO  - Astrobiology. 2010 Sep;10(7):687-703. doi: 10.1089/ast.2010.0491.