In a paper commissioned by the International Journal of Astrobiology, James Wray from the School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at Georgia Tech, and a collaborator on the Curiosity Science Team, explores what we already know, or hypothesize, and looks at the questions we hope Curiosity can answer.
The Mars rover Curiosity landed safely on August 6th in Gale crater, a 150 km-wide impact scar near the Martian equator. Rising up from this crater's floor is a mountain of sedimentary rocks 5 km high (Aeolis Mons or Mount Sharp), which has intrigued scientists for decades.
Wray outlines how Curiosity's exploration can answer our most pressing questions: was Gale ever filled by a lake, or were all its sediments laid down in dry environments? When water did flow, what was its temperature and chemistry, and what do these imply about the habitability of Gale 3.5 billion years ago?
James Wray said: "From the stunning images and first-of-its-kind science data already coming back from Curiosity, we know that Gale crater will astound and perplex us for years to come. As we explore our new geologic playground, our roving will be guided by the orbital observations and key questions that led us there."
Read the paper at this link: http://journals.cambridge.org/ija/wray
Reproduced courtesy of Cambridge University Press. For more news stories visit www.cambridge.org; for more information contact Vicky Westmore at press@cambridge.org
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