Curiosity Just Went Through Mud?

Well.......a wet patch of sand anyway. I don't know if I'd call it "mud" or not, but for the purposes of the thread title, it works well enough.

I was just looking at today's (well, the latest) images from Curiosity, and just from the thumbs, I knew I'd like the pictures. Great angle. From a camera under the chassis, down by the wheels. I thought "oh! great angle for looking for little bugs" or something like this......a nice close view of whatever's there anyway. So I start browsing through them..........no bugs, no fossils, no more fingers blown off ancient statues......awwww......lol.

After disappointment lets loose it's grip I just start skimming through each one again as I always do, just looking for interesting things or geometry and I think "wow, quite a bit of sand is sticking to the wheels. more than I've ever seen in other pics to date" but think nothing more of it. But then I get to the last 2 images from that angle and that "more dirt sticking than normal" turns into very wet sand, to the point where it looks like mud!!

Here's a link to the two images where it's CLEARLY wet. Click on the image to make it more detailed
EDIT- In case it's not clear to you where I'm looking, zoom in to the treads at the very tops of the wheels in the images.

mars.jpl.nasa.gov...

mars.jpl.nasa.gov...

Now, am I just seeing things here? Am I crazy or did that rover just go through a muddy patch of sand? Mind you, it's moving in this series of images. If you look at the 5 or 6 images leading up to this, it seems to be rolling into a gradually more wet area of sand.

Thoughts? A ground spring perhaps? Did it just rain? Am I just crazy?

Ha cant get me now!


Whoever starred that before my edit WOW! That was abojt 10 second window!

Originally posted by Consequence
Shouldn't people be banned for such titles, when the content is far from it?

Thank you for nothing.

What do you mean? Did you even look at the images at good quality? There is clearly what looks like mud on the treads at the top of the wheels. So what in the title is giving you such fits that you think I should be banned? If it looks like mud, what else should I have put? H2O saturated dirt particles? You tell me?

I'm posting from a PS3 because my PC is broken, so I can't use photo-shop to post a zoomed image, so for that I apologize. But what I'm talking about is pretty clear.

Is shadow of curiosity...not dampness. Really, you saw water....

Des

reply to post by Larry L


Well Im looking at the images on my Atari and its pretty obvious there is no mud.

Originally posted by Destinyone
Is shadow of curiosity...not dampness. Really, you saw water....

Des

Nope. Actually it's specifically areas of the tread not in shadow, which is why it's so obvious. The sunlight is making the moisture clear as day.

In the first image, on the tire in the center of view......there's a vertical (angled) stripe of shadow being cast by Curiosity. To the left of that shadow.....the top 2 treads....the actual "teeth" of the tread....the part that digs into the ground to create traction.......look closely....zoom in.....you can see on it's last revolution it dug into wet sand.

In the second image.....same thing......very top treads are the most obvious. You can see the wet mud glistening in the sun.

reply to post by Larry L


The only thing that is pretty clear to me is...that is dust on the wheels. Example, I live in the South, red clay country. During the Summer months, it's dry as a bone here. But you can drive down any dirt road and get the exact same thing in the treads of your tires...it's called...dust. Particles of granulated dirt.

Des

I think I see what you were talking about, on the second picture. However to me, it does not look wet. Have you ever seen a wet and muddy tire before? Doesn't look like that. This just looks like dirt that has stuck to tire, and been compressed as the tire is rolling. Dirt sticks everywhere and the tire does not need wetness for this to happen.

reply to post by Larry L


Looking at the pictures I realize that I do not know the composition of that soil. Really fine particles could behave that way possibly like getting baking flower on your hands..

There does seem to be moisture content on the wheels to me. Makes me think the whole "rover may be contaminated with earth bacteria" bit a little much..

I agree with the op.

The second picture shows two distinct colors of dust. I think the darker color has more moisture.

Originally posted by Larry L
What do you mean?

I thought I was being very clear. I mean there's no mud while you claimed that Curiousity just went through mud.

Did you even look at the images at good quality?

Of course I did.

There is clearly what looks like mud on the treads at the top of the wheels.

It's a thin layer of packed sand/gravel/dust.
"What looks like mud [to you]" does not equal "mud".

So what in the title is giving you such fits that you think I should be banned?

The completely false claim.

If it looks like mud, what else should I have put? H2O saturated dirt particles? You tell me?

How about "I think Curiousity went through mud"?

I'm posting from a PS3 because my PC is broken, so I can't use photo-shop to post a zoomed image, so for that I apologize.

Because pixelated "mud" is better? Just like in real life...?

But what I'm talking about is pretty clear.

edit on 11-9-2012 by Larry L because: (no reason given)

Yes, it is clear what you are talking about. And it is clear that you are wrong. And it is clear that the topic is completely false.

in the first image i dont see anything that does not look like compacted dust..

In the second image.....same thing......very top treads are the most obvious. You can see the wet mud glistening in the sun.

but in the second pic, i goota say that i do see the reflection that the OP talks about, and it looks like that area (as far as i can tell) does have caked material there - also there appears to be two distinct colours to the dust/material on the wheels and treads - the bottom layer being much lighter in colour, and the upper layer being much browner, lending an appearance of it containing moisture - the OP could be onto something here. maybe it is not "mud" but perhaps it could be atmospheric condensation due to night/day temp changes or another cause? i dont think that the OP deserves to be so easily discounted tho.

Very fine dust particles will stick to wheels like that. There might also be some static charge involved, like on the Moon. I don't see any wetness in those two photos, just lots of fine dust disturbed and stuck to the wheels

reply to post by Larry L


Here is what I mean about the different colors. I think the darker color dirt is wet...

SCROLL to the right all the way.




Dang OP Very nice find.

cool.

In fact I am going to go out and say that it's definitely wet. It's not super wet (muddy) but it is wet dust. That second picture is obvious once you let your eyes adjust. It's exactly like slightly wet powder that mostly falls off but the core of it sticks to the wheel.. You can tell by the pattern and the color..

Originally posted by Destinyone
reply to post by Larry L

 

The only thing that is pretty clear to me is...that is dust on the wheels. Example, I live in the South, red clay country. During the Summer months, it's dry as a bone here. But you can drive down any dirt road and get the exact same thing in the treads of your tires...it's called...dust. Particles of granulated dirt.

Des

You're right. It looks EXACTLY like tires going through clay. And why does that clay stick to your tires in that way instead of just coating them in dust? Answer: Because it has MOISTURE in it. I'm not saying this thing just went through a river. I'm saying First of all: it is clearly going through fairly damp sand, as opposed to completely dry and arid sand because of the way it's sticking to the wheels, and Second: that in those last 2 images (the ones I posted, it shows that that particular wheel went through a particularly damp spot. Damp enough to actually have visible moisture about 1 inch under the surface.

I mean jeez.....in that first picture, just look at the track in the sand left by the rover. DOes that look like a track left in arid sand? If so you've never been to a beach. That looks like a track left when a dirtbike (similar aggressive tread) goes through wet snad a few hours after tide goes out.

How close are they to the supposedly dried up river bed in the latest images? I don't think it's quite as dry as it looks. Just like when I go out to Arizona on desert excursion in the Sanora. Find a dry looking lake bed....move an inch of sand and it's wet.........dig a foot down and in about an hour you'll magically have some drinking water out of a seemingly arid desert on the surface.

reply to post by Larry L


Here you go





beaten

Originally posted by Dustytoad
reply to post by Larry L

 

Here is what I mean about the different colors. I think the darker color dirt is wet...

SCROLL to the right all the way.

Dang OP Very nice find.

Cool .

edit on 9/11/2012 by Dustytoad because: (no reason given)

I see that as just slightly damp. The part I'm seeing as obviously "WET" is the very top tread.....the "horizon of the wheel if you will, and to the left on that "horizon".

That does look wet, notice the clumping of the soil at the top treads & the darker coloration versus what appears to be dry dust.

Then in the other pic we notice that the soil while in shadow is "shiny" at the tread depressions.


Ya that looks wet to me.

It looks "wet" to me. Doesn't mean it is, of course, but it does beg a few interesting questions.