Comments on: What cause this little “explosion”. https://habitablezone.com/2013/01/23/what-cause-this-little-explosion/ Tue, 07 Apr 2026 19:18:10 -0700 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: RobVG https://habitablezone.com/2013/01/23/what-cause-this-little-explosion/#comment-22789 RobVG Tue, 29 Jan 2013 03:13:31 +0000 http://habitablezone.net/?p=29992#comment-22789 Well then, correct ye may be... Well then, correct ye may be…

]]> By: bowser https://habitablezone.com/2013/01/23/what-cause-this-little-explosion/#comment-22788 bowser Tue, 29 Jan 2013 02:13:55 +0000 http://habitablezone.net/?p=29992#comment-22788 It did not seem to survive the impact. I checked the picture as carefully as I could, and did not find any traces of it, and concluded that if a meteoroid did cause that damage, it was completely consumed as it imparted energy to the structures on the ground. Ergo, meteor is the correct term. There must be a corpse for an "ite". (Now the truth of the matter is that I have never been able to keep straight what is a meteor and what is a meteorite and have used them interchangeably all my life and been wrong about half the time.) It did not seem to survive the impact. I checked the picture as carefully as I could, and did not find any traces of it, and concluded that if a meteoroid did cause that damage, it was completely consumed as it imparted energy to the structures on the ground.

Ergo, meteor is the correct term. There must be a corpse for an “ite”.

(Now the truth of the matter is that I have never been able to keep straight what is a meteor and what is a meteorite and have used them interchangeably all my life and been wrong about half the time.)

]]> By: RobVG https://habitablezone.com/2013/01/23/what-cause-this-little-explosion/#comment-22787 RobVG Tue, 29 Jan 2013 01:58:35 +0000 http://habitablezone.net/?p=29992#comment-22787 <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteoroid" rel="nofollow">"If a meteoroid reaches the ground and survives impact, then it is called a meteorite".</a> “If a meteoroid reaches the ground and survives impact, then it is called a meteorite”.

]]> By: bowser https://habitablezone.com/2013/01/23/what-cause-this-little-explosion/#comment-22783 bowser Mon, 28 Jan 2013 05:04:59 +0000 http://habitablezone.net/?p=29992#comment-22783 Why not a small meteor hitting it obliquely? Why not a small meteor hitting it obliquely?

]]> By: podrock https://habitablezone.com/2013/01/23/what-cause-this-little-explosion/#comment-22776 podrock Sat, 26 Jan 2013 01:56:10 +0000 http://habitablezone.net/?p=29992#comment-22776 I wish I'd more time to peruse the raw images coming in from Curiosity. Everytime I start going through the raws I get overwhelmed with the variety of structures coming back in full color. The rock is sediment, apparently, according to the team, not igneous as I had postulated as my first option in an earlier post. At leat some of the veins are gypsum; we'll learn more in the coming days and weeks. there are at least two different vein types in the picture: the pale vein at the bottom with no relief and the double walled veins that are everywhere and standing above the matrix. I've seen this many times, the vein material acts a cement in the original sediment which, when weathered, stand out as ridges. Why the double walls? Often, when a vein infiltrates the country rock, it will adhere to the walls of the crack it fills while the center of the vein continues to act as a conduit for fluids. And so many interesting clasts in the sediment. The ones with the empty centers are probably concretions...a clast in the rock diffuses outward, cementing the surrounding rock while the center disolves away. There is a complex story in this image alone. I wish I’d more time to peruse the raw images coming in from Curiosity. Everytime I start going through the raws I get overwhelmed with the variety of structures coming back in full color. The rock is sediment, apparently, according to the team, not igneous as I had postulated as my first option in an earlier post. At leat some of the veins are gypsum; we’ll learn more in the coming days and weeks. there are at least two different vein types in the picture: the pale vein at the bottom with no relief and the double walled veins that are everywhere and standing above the matrix. I’ve seen this many times, the vein material acts a cement in the original sediment which, when weathered, stand out as ridges. Why the double walls? Often, when a vein infiltrates the country rock, it will adhere to the walls of the crack it fills while the center of the vein continues to act as a conduit for fluids. And so many interesting clasts in the sediment. The ones with the empty centers are probably concretions…a clast in the rock diffuses outward, cementing the surrounding rock while the center disolves away.

There is a complex story in this image alone.

]]> By: SteveS https://habitablezone.com/2013/01/23/what-cause-this-little-explosion/#comment-22771 SteveS Fri, 25 Jan 2013 15:08:47 +0000 http://habitablezone.net/?p=29992#comment-22771 <a href="http://www.universetoday.com/99622/curiositys-robotic-arm-camera-snaps-1st-night-images/#ixzz2J01rA1UP" rel="nofollow">Looks</a> like the rover did it on purpose. <img src="http://ut-images.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/721593main_pia16711-43_1024-7681-580x435.jpg" alt="" /> <blockquote>MAHLI took the close-up images of a rock target named “Sayunei” on Jan 22 (Sol 165), located near the front-left wheel after the rover had driven over and scuffed the area to break up rocks in an effort to try and expose fresh material, free of obscuring dust.</blockquote> There does look like there is a scuff mark on Rob's pic. Looks like the rover did it on purpose.

MAHLI took the close-up images of a rock target named “Sayunei” on Jan 22 (Sol 165), located near the front-left wheel after the rover had driven over and scuffed the area to break up rocks in an effort to try and expose fresh material, free of obscuring dust.

There does look like there is a scuff mark on Rob’s pic.

]]> By: TB https://habitablezone.com/2013/01/23/what-cause-this-little-explosion/#comment-22763 TB Thu, 24 Jan 2013 18:56:13 +0000 http://habitablezone.net/?p=29992#comment-22763 Is this in a frequent frost zone? I've seen places on earth where freeze expansion has busted rocks open. Is this in a frequent frost zone?

I’ve seen places on earth where freeze expansion has busted rocks open.

]]> By: Robert https://habitablezone.com/2013/01/23/what-cause-this-little-explosion/#comment-22761 Robert Thu, 24 Jan 2013 18:14:45 +0000 http://habitablezone.net/?p=29992#comment-22761 <a href="http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl-raw-images/msss/00164/mcam/0164MR0885020000E1_DXXX.jpg" rel="nofollow"><img src="http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl-raw-images/msss/00164/mcam/0164MR0885020000E1_DXXX-br.jpg" /></a> right mastcam, sol 164. right mastcam, sol 164.

]]> By: Robert https://habitablezone.com/2013/01/23/what-cause-this-little-explosion/#comment-22758 Robert Thu, 24 Jan 2013 17:59:53 +0000 http://habitablezone.net/?p=29992#comment-22758 <a href="http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl-raw-images/msss/00164/mcam/0164ML0883000000E1_DXXX.jpg" rel="nofollow"><img src="http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl-raw-images/msss/00164/mcam/0164ML0883000000E1_DXXX-br.jpg" /></a> (from sol 164 raw images; linked to the full-rez original) Could I make a request? It took me a while to track down the image, before I could then go looking for context in other images. It sure would be nice if people would identify the images they post and provide links back to the source. Kvetching out of the way, I found it interesting that I couldn't find other examples of this kind of "damage" in other images in the sequence. And the larger view confirms that debris spread to the lower left. The image I can't get out of my head, due to the lack of any other signs and portents on the ground, is of a golfer taking a swing and making a divot. Silly image, I know, but it's harder to fit the scene into a scenario of, say, a piece of ejecta skimming low over the ground. Only one chunk? And it appears "fresh". Is there a nearby fresh crater? That image inspires <i>lots</i> of questions. Excellent find, Rob. (from sol 164 raw images; linked to the full-rez original)

Could I make a request? It took me a while to track down the image, before I could then go looking for context in other images. It sure would be nice if people would identify the images they post and provide links back to the source.

Kvetching out of the way, I found it interesting that I couldn’t find other examples of this kind of “damage” in other images in the sequence. And the larger view confirms that debris spread to the lower left. The image I can’t get out of my head, due to the lack of any other signs and portents on the ground, is of a golfer taking a swing and making a divot. Silly image, I know, but it’s harder to fit the scene into a scenario of, say, a piece of ejecta skimming low over the ground. Only one chunk? And it appears “fresh”. Is there a nearby fresh crater?

That image inspires lots of questions. Excellent find, Rob.

]]> By: SteveS https://habitablezone.com/2013/01/23/what-cause-this-little-explosion/#comment-22757 SteveS Thu, 24 Jan 2013 16:12:03 +0000 http://habitablezone.net/?p=29992#comment-22757 The holes should be lighter in color if drilled, as seen by the lighter color of the broken off chunks. The debris field does look like it is one directional pattern heading toward the camera shot. Got me. The holes should be lighter in color if drilled, as seen by the lighter color of the broken off chunks. The debris field does look like it is one directional pattern heading toward the camera shot.

Got me.

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