Mineral That Forms in Water Found on Mars
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
The Mars rover Spirit found a mineral linked to water during its exploration of the Red Planet, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory said Monday.
Scientists identified the mineral goethite in bedrock studied in the Columbia Hills. Goethite forms only in the presence of water, although it may be in liquid, ice or gaseous form.
The Columbia Hills bedrock was previously found to have hematite, a mineral that usually, but not always, forms in the presence of water. The findings were presented at a meeting of the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco.
