Chemistry and Mineralogy (CheMin) instrument tagged posts

NASA Rover takes Samples from Active Linear Dune on Mars

This view from the Mast Camera (Mastcam) on NASA's Curiosity Mars rover shows two scales of ripples, plus other textures, in an area where the mission examined a linear-shaped dune in the Bagnold dune field on lower Mount Sharp. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

This view from the Mast Camera (Mastcam) on NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover shows two scales of ripples, plus other textures, in an area where the mission examined a linear-shaped dune in the Bagnold dune field on lower Mount Sharp. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

As it drives uphill from a band of rippled sand dunes, NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover is toting a fistful of dark sand for onboard analysis that will complete the rover’s investigation of those dunes. From early February to early April, the rover examined 4 sites near a linear dune for comparison with what it found in late 2015 and early 2016 during its investigation of crescent-shaped dunes. This two-phase campaign is the 1st close-up study of active dunes anywhere other than Earth...

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