Weird Martian soil properties

"Carsten Troelsgaard" wrote in message ...
Warning: speculation follows:
Not a martiologist, but dirt which, after being peeled back sticks to
itself without deforming is fairly typical of loess. On earth, this is
usually a property of being wet. Perhaps there is some similar static
attraction, or ' instant freeze drying' of soil on Mars.

could it be raised magnetic properties in the sediment - due to aparently a
general high proportion of Fe ?

The red coloring seems to be somewhat surficial

We'll need to
see just how dry this stuff is, no?

Carsten

I was thinking that myself and when I was reading about the iron
content from volcanic fallout and the rust color mentioned in another
message topic it gave me more cause to think that. Can, and how
would, this 'stuff' become, magnetized? Can the Rover check for that?

"John Griffin" wrote in message
. 1.4...
"Paul Neave" wrote:

It's mud... but not as we know it:

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp.../chitrib_ts/20
040107/ts_chicagotrib/nasagetsgoodlookatmarssoilandatruepuzz
le

Pooh. It's Beagle 2.

Or maybe it's a fulgurite.


Or Beagle Pooh
;_)

Sorry couldn't resist...
Bob

New idea: (now don't laugh)
How about freeze-dried Silly Putty powder? Or some other clay sized
dust which, when compressed will adhere to itself forming thin, bendable
sheets?



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On Fri, 09 Jan 2004 19:50:32 -0600, Jo Schaper joschapernospam@socketdotnet
carved in granite...

New idea: (now don't laugh)
How about freeze-dried Silly Putty powder? Or some other clay sized
dust which, when compressed will adhere to itself forming thin, bendable
sheets?

Mars- the home of Silly Putty. Yeeeeeeah. I think the company that makes it
might feel a bit crowded if we send our folks up there. They'll really have the
SP market cornered! "Martian Silly Putty- $499.95 per pound! Get yours today!"
Carl


at least I didn't laugh...
.....yet!
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Coalbunny wrote:


Mars- the home of Silly Putty. Yeeeeeeah. I think the company that makes it
might feel a bit crowded if we send our folks up there. They'll really have the
SP market cornered! "Martian Silly Putty- $499.95 per pound! Get yours today!"

Does that include shipping?

--
Odysseus

"Kevin H" wrote in message
om...
Hi all,

I was looking at the color photos from the Spirit martian rover, and this
one
caught my attention:

http://www.spaceflightnow.com/mars/m...lorimage4.html

It's a photo of part of the surface disturbed during landing, as the
airbags impacted the soil. The spot of impact looks very strange. It
looks like some sort of silt that was peeled yet still sticks to itself.
Part of it appears to have exposed a large rock underneath, as if the
soil above was pulled away in one large chunk. It all seems like some
sort of sticky powder.

Maybe the folks at NASA should target the soil disturbed by the lander
as one of the first stops for the rover...


I'd like to see some scale superimposed on the shot to gauge what we're
seeing.