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This Bathtub Ring of Minerals is More Evidence for an Ancient Warm, Wet Mars

April 23, 2026
This Bathtub Ring of Minerals is More Evidence for an Ancient Warm, Wet Mars
By Evan Gough (https://ift.tt/ihuWmX8)

MSL Curiosity is exploring a region in Gale Crater called the Amapari Marker Band. It's like a bathtub ring where metals have accumulated unexpectedly. The region is evidence that Gale Crater was once a paleolake. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

NASA's MSL Curiosity rover found a bathtub ring-like deposit of zinc, manganese, and iron in Gale Crater. These metals precipitate out of water in the right conditions, and there's not really any other way they could've become concentrated here. Adding to the excitement, these deposits also form in lakes on Earth, where the concentrated metals are food for some types of bacteria.



April 24, 2026 at 01:59AM
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