Curiosity finds gravel on Mars!

So much jealousy.

reply to post by jiggerj


reply to post by 46ACE


My apologies for apparently not laying that on quite thickly enough (I figured the quote from Sweet Brown highlighted it sufficiently?) - my post was a satirical jab at those Schuyler was having to scold for the obvious. Even something as seemingly mundane as gravel can and likely should be exciting, and more time is absolutely called for.

Jiggerj, you are certainly correct.

46ACE, well spoken and true.

Sorry for contributing to what I was trying to skewer in lighthearted fashion. I have failed you both.

*hangs head in shame*

reply to post by Praetorius

Certainly nothing personal: I was shaking my head ruefully and shocked at the responses from what I assumed were a bunch of(closet?) "science/technology geeks"...

"wasted money feed the poor":competely expected from the (shortsighted) "bleeding hearts".

"You American flight engineers cheering at JPL(quit it);You didn't go to mars by yourself": Expected from you know who.
"They didn't go; they're not there;doctored images; 'shot in a studio"; bahhhh ridiculous; but expected from this bunch......
"where's the dillon mini-gun on the rover? Pound that"gravel" into dust!: Gun folks; expected..
"Stupid gun crazy Americans......":Euro's/Aussies/brits: also really expected.
Anybody I missed? Fresh out of commentary.

This is how we learn to be better....to paraphrase an awesome speech...

"We choose to go to the moon not because it is easy, but because it is hard"

It is only by pushing the limits of our capacity do we learn to expand those capacities. I applaud this effort even when I am not exactly sure what we will gain from it. Will we make a base and put an outpost on Mars? I hope so, but it is not going to be easy and guess what? Some will die in the effort. it is how we advance....progression can be painful and there is always the chance for loss. I bow with sincerity to those willing to take the risks and advance our game piece to the next level..."You may now pass 'go' and collect $200.00'..."

This is how we grow as a species people...even when in the short term we don't understand the goals....

How about exert some patience and give them a chance?

reply to post by schuyler


You tell them bro, airbrushing takes time

reply to post by 46ACE


You forgot
Phage throwing a bucket of cold water over everybody. To be expected.

reply to post by Samuelis


Phage was just trying to be a buzzkill, and keep his job. Notice how quickly he backed out of the convo after I started asking the questions that NASA is probably asking right now?

Don't worry Phage, we won't rat on you. It's nice to have an ear at the top.

Regardless, his last post is right. It could be for many reasons. I'm still excited. Nothing he can say or do will change that. Any glimpse into Mars' past is an exciting thing for me.

Originally posted by GoOfYFoOt
Have you ever seen a tornado throw a block wall several hundred yards?
What are the maximum sustained winds on the red planet?
Doesn't Mars have storms, unlike the Moon which has no atmosphere?

What's the big deal over gravel?

Why the gravel discussion? Exactly 2 reasons: 1) it's the only thing we know Curiosity has seen so far. 2) because we all enjoy spewing our opinions at others in a safe, warm, cozy, friendly, compassionate, and highly intellectual environment such as this...

The gravel was almost certainly not deposited by wind. Mars atmosphere is only 1% as dense as ours and you'd barely feel a 100mph breeze ... tangential dust-devil winds on Mars have been measured at 20-30 m/s (~45-70 mph) using HiRISE data. Sand and dust can be lifted at these velocities in Mars' atmosphere, but not gravel. Winds only strong enough to initiate sand movement on Mars (saltation velocity) are not common, and it's only in the last year or two that 'some' Martian sand dunes have been shown to be mobile at all.

I definitely like the idea some here have proposed ... of imported Mars-gravel driveways! ~ FINALLY a viable motive for private industry to invest in space exploration! It'll be all the rage in California, and easier to mine than ore...~

Originally posted by Domo1
While I certainly see value in exploring the universe, perhaps that billion dollars could have gone to better use. Like maybe feeding people, helping out the poor, paying off some national debt...

I'm sorry that I didn't read your post, but I only read words that might save babies or cure aids

Originally posted by AnarchysAngel
reply to post by jiggerj

 

Yes. A few pages back we said water was the likely culprit. Phage threw the number out of water being more common 1-3.5 billion years ago on Mars. I'm finding it hard to believe that the gravel eroded by glaciers 1 billion years ago is still sitting there.

Which leads me to the request for an estimate on how long gravel created by a glacier 1 billion years ago would last.

Any geologists care to take a stab at it? I don't think rock dredgers from lousiana qualify as a geology expert.

edit on 6-8-2012 by AnarchysAngel because: (no reason given)

This may be really stupid, but I have to ask: We know that Mars has sandstorms. How come this gravel didn't get buried in sand over the last billion years or so?

reply to post by jiggerj


The gravel may have been covered and uncovered several times throughout history. Some places on Mars are covered by meters of dust, and others have almost none.

With no rain, no plate tectonics, no oxygen to react chemically, and only 1% of Earth's atmospheric density, weathering processes are extremely slow on Mars ... so stuff just sits there ... without changing much ... for a looooong time ... sounds kinda boring.

Originally posted by excentryk
reply to post by jiggerj

 

The gravel may have been covered and uncovered several times throughout history. Some places on Mars are covered by meters of dust, and others have almost none.

With no rain, no plate tectonics, no oxygen to react chemically, and only 1% of Earth's atmospheric density, weathering processes are extremely slow on Mars ... so stuff just sits there ... without changing much ... for a looooong time ... sounds kinda boring.

Not boring at all. I can sit here for a long time. One second, two seconds, thr- eh screw it I'm goin' for smoke.

Originally posted by AnarchysAngel

Anyone care to speculate about the origin of......gravel, on Mars?

Well that's the interesting question. Most gravel on Earth is formed as a result erosion by waves or rivers.

I find that interesting. You find it frivioulous? Why?

Originally posted by jiggerj

Originally posted by AnarchysAngel
reply to post by jiggerj

 

Yes. A few pages back we said water was the likely culprit. Phage threw the number out of water being more common 1-3.5 billion years ago on Mars. I'm finding it hard to believe that the gravel eroded by glaciers 1 billion years ago is still sitting there.

Which leads me to the request for an estimate on how long gravel created by a glacier 1 billion years ago would last.

Any geologists care to take a stab at it? I don't think rock dredgers from lousiana qualify as a geology expert.

edit on 6-8-2012 by AnarchysAngel because: (no reason given)

This may be really stupid, but I have to ask: We know that Mars has sandstorms. How come this gravel didn't get buried in sand over the last billion years or so?

Did you see the landing video? Note how TONS of dust is blown away by the thrusters? This should answer your question. Also..there are storms etc. on Mars too.

Originally posted by Domo1
While I certainly see value in exploring the universe, perhaps that billion dollars could have gone to better use. Like maybe feeding people, helping out the poor, paying off some national debt...

Yeah 'right' and if you spent all the money on the world than on this robot, it would solve all the world problems 'right'

Big deal that you will help some people for some time, they will live for soem time but when they die after, and the problem will reoccur again with the next gen.

What I find useless is that they brought a camera with BLACK WHITEcolor WTF?

I swear on the bottom right hand side of one the photo's it looks like a MacDonald's Wrapper!

reply to post by nighthawk1954


of course they have a franchise there, didn't you know that??

Originally posted by Phage
I don't see anything in your source about there being more wind erosion on Mars than there is on Earth. But yes, it would be the predominant form of erosion on Mars.

Actually, I've always been surprised that the rocks on Mars aren't smoother than they are. Sure, the maybe the wind isn't as dense or strong, but we're talking about stuff that is exposed to a mind abrasive wind for billions of years. Once in a while a meteor will hit, stirring things up a little, but otherwise, I would have expected a lot if not most of the surface stuff to have the rough edges worn off after all this time.

Just goes to show you.

reply to post by AnarchysAngel


Amazing! Curiosity found rocks on a rocky desert planet!

reply to post by Blue Shift

Rocks fracture.
Thermal effects. Frost (CO2 and water).

But that "gravel" looks pretty smooth.