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Mineralogical Mapping of Gale Crater, Mars Using CRISM and CheMin

Session: Advancing Mineral Science and Exploring Planetary Surfaces: In Honor of MSA Dana Medalist, Elizabeth B. Rampe (Posters)

Presenting Author:

Kristina Curran

Authors:

Curran, Kristina¹, Gagne, Marc², Bosbyshell, Howell³

(1) Earth and Space Sciences, West Chester University, Chesterbrook, PA, USA, (2) Earth and Space Sciences, West Chester University, West Chester, PA, USA, (3) Earth and Space Sciences, West Chester University, West Chester, PA, USA,

Abstract:

Located in the southern highlands of Mars near the Martian dichotomy boundary, Gale Crater is a 150 km impact crater which formed ~3.6 Ga. It was selected as the landing site for NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) due to the orbital detection of clay and sulfate minerals, which most likely formed during the presence of water. The CheMin instrument on the Curiosity Rover has identified sulfates (Vaniman et al., 2013), hematite, phyllosilicates (Bristow, 2018), carbonates, and iron oxyhydroxides (Tutolo et al., 2025), which were most likely formed in an ancient aqueous environment. Hyperspectral images from the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) cover the VIS to SWIR spectrum. In this study, we analyze Map-projected Targeted Reduced Data Records (MTRDRs) derived from Full-Resolution Targeted (FRT) CRISM observations at a resolution of 20 m/pixel using the Java CRISM Analysis Tool (JCAT). The MTRDRs are georeferenced with the high-resolution (6m/pixel) MRO Context-Camera (CTX). We have analyzed eight MTRDR FRT CRISM datasets obtained between 2008 and 2010. The CRISM stamps cover 50 square km, which includes most of Curiosity's 36-km trajectory and the Bagnold Dunes, Gediz Vallis, Vera Rubin Ridge, Glen Torridon, and Sakarya Vallis. Specifically, we use the following Viviano et al. (2014) calibrated summary products: BDI1000IR and BDI2000 (overall pyroxene), HCPINDEX (high-calcium pyroxene), LCPINDEX (low-calcium pyroxene), BD2290, D2300, and BD2250 (phyllosilicates), BD2230, BD1900_2, BD3000, BD2100, and SINDEX2 (sulfates), CINDEX2 (carbonates), BD860_2 (crystalline hematite), BD1300 (plagioclase with an Fe²⁺ substitution), and OLINDEX3 (olivine). All six mineral species have been identified with confidence in at least one CRISM stamp. We present a composite mineral map of the northwest quadrant of the crater’s rim.

Rampe et al. (2018) used the CheMin X-ray diffractometer on Curiosity to detect pyroxene, olivine, hematite, sulfates, magnetite, quartz, and plagioclase at Ogunquit Beach. Rampe et al. (2025) identified pyroxene, plagioclase, sanidite, hematite, sulfates, and phyllosilicates at Kings Canyon. At Onguit Beach, we identify crystalline hematite, high-calcium pyroxene, and olivine with CRISM. At Kings Canyon, we identify pyroxene, hematite, sulfates, and phyllosilicates with CRISM. Our results so far complement the CheMin results. In future work, we plan to correlate the Gale Crater mineral map with specific processes to better understand the aqueous history of Mars.