Article ID Journal Published Year Pages File Type
8134816 Icarus 2016 7 Pages PDF
Abstract
An explanation for spatial patterns of gypsum, anhydrite, and bassanite on Mars and Earth could be past environmental differences. Anhydrite and bassanite are favored near Mars' equator with higher temperatures, along with drier, more saline, and more acidic environments. Gypsum would be favored at the lower temperatures in the Mars polar region with wetter, lower salinity, and less acidic environments. On Earth, Ca-sulfate would likely over time largely finish re-precipitating as the more insoluble gypsum. But Mars was not in long-term moderate climates compared to Earth that strongly influenced the dominance of gypsum on Earth. So while temperature and water/acid environments for CaSO4 minerals on Mars may have been a major factor for these precipitations, the short-term moderate climates on Mars may also have influenced the prevalence of higher soluble CaSO4 species in the lower Mars latitudes.
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering Earth and Planetary Sciences Space and Planetary Science
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