a shallow basin named Yellowknife Bay, and delivered pulverized powder to the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) and Chemistry and Mineralogy (CheMin) instruments inside the robot. On Feb. 8, 2013 (mission Sol 182), Curiosity used the rotary-percussion drill mounted on the tool turret at the end of the seven-foot (2.1 meter) long robotic arm to bore a circular hole about 0.63 inch (16 mm) wide and about 2.5 inches (64 mm) deep into John Klein that produced a slurry of gray tailings. “For the first time we are examining ancient rocks that have not been exposed to the Martian surface environment, and weathering, and preserve the environment in which they formed,” said Joel Hurowitz, Curiosity sampling system scientist at JPL. This is a key point because subsequent oxidation reactions can destroy organic molecules and thereby potential signs of habitability and life. The gray colored tailings give a completely fresh insight into Mars that offers a stark contrast to the prevailing views of reddish-orange rusty, oxidized dust. One theory is that it might be related to different oxidations states of iron that could potentially inform us about the habitability of Mars inside the rover’s Gale Crater landing site. The presence of abundant phyllosilicate clay minerals in the John Klein drill powder indicates a fresh water environment. Further evidence derives from the veiny sedimentary bedrock shot through with calcium sulfate mineral veins that form in a neutral to mildly alkaline pH environment. “Clay minerals make up at least 20 percent of the composition of this sample,” said David Blake, principal investigator for the CheMin instrument at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif. The rovers long robotic arm fed aspirin-sized samples of the gray, pulverized powder into the miniaturized CheMin SAM analytical instruments on Feb. 22 and 23, or
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Curiosity tool turret located at end of robotic arm is positioned with drill bit in contact with John Klein outcrop for first hammer drilling into Martian rock surface on Jan 31, 2013. Photo: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Ken Kremer/Marco Di Lorenzo
At the center of this image is the hole in a rock where the Curiosity rover conducted its first sample drilling on Mars during its 182nd Martian day of operations. A test that produced the shallower hole two days earlier is shown to the right. The sample-collection hole is 0.63 inch (1.6 centimeters) in diameter and 2.5 inches (6.4 centimeters) deep. The “mini drill” Photo: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS test hole has a depth of 0.8 inch (2 centimeters). Sols 195 and 196. The samples were analyzed on Sol 200. Scientists were able to identify carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur and phosphorus in the sample - all of which are essential elements for life as we know it based on organic molecules.
But no significant levels of organics have been detected yet. “The range of chemical ingredients we have identified in the sample is impressive, and it suggests pairings such as sulfates and sulfides that indicate a possible chemical energy source for micro-
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