Desiccation cracks provide evidence of lake drying on Mars, Sutton Island member, Murray formation, Gale Crater

Creators: Stein, N.; Grotzinger, J. P.; Schieber, J.; Mangold, N.; Hallet, B.; Newsom, H.; Stack, K. M.; Berger, J. A.; Thompson, L.; Siebach, K. L.; Cousin, A.; Le Mouélic, S.; Minitti, M.; Sumner, D. Y.; Fedo, C.; House, C. H.; Gupta, S.; Vasavada, A. R.; Gellert, R.; Wiens, R. C.; Frydenvang, J.; Forni, O.; Meslin, P. Y.; Payré, V.; Dehouck, E.

Abstract

Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity rover data are used to describe the morphology of desiccation cracks observed in ancient lacustrine strata at Gale crater, Mars, and to interpret their paleoenvironmental setting. The desiccation cracks indicate subaerial exposure of lacustrine facies in the Sutton Island member of the Murray formation. In association with ripple cross-stratification and possible eolian cross-bedding, these facies indicate a transition from longer-lived perennial lakes recorded by older strata to younger lakes characterized by intermittent exposure. The transition from perennial to episodically exposed lacustrine environments provides evidence for local to regional climate change that can help constrain Mars climate models.

Additional Information

© 2018 The Authors. Gold Open Access: This paper is published under the terms of the CC-BY license. Manuscript received 18 December 2017; Revised manuscript received 20 March 2018; Manuscript accepted 29 March 2018; Published: April 16, 2018. We are indebted to the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) project engineering and science teams, and MSL team members who participated in tactical and strategic operations, for their efforts that were vital in collecting the data presented. Thanks to S. Kattenhorn, K. Benison, and K. Herkenhoff for reviews that improved this manuscript. Some of this research was performed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology (USA), under a contract with NASA. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Grant No. DGE-1144469. These data are archived in the Planetary Data System (pds.nasa.gov).

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