[Rockhounds] Curiosity Cracked Open a Rock on Mars And Found a Big Surprise

[Kreigh Tomaszewski]

A rock on Mars <https://www.sciencealert.com/mars> spilled a surprising
yellow treasure after Curiosity accidentally cracked through its
unremarkable exterior.

When the rover rolled its 899-kilogram (1,982-pound) body over the rock
back in May, the rock broke open, revealing yellow crystals of elemental
sulfur: brimstone.

Although sulfates are fairly common on Mars, this represents the first time
sulfur has been found on the red planet in its pure elemental form.

What's even more exciting is that the Gediz Vallis Channel, where Curiosity
found the rock, is littered with rocks that look suspiciously similar to
the sulfur rock before it got fortuitously crushed – suggesting that,
somehow, elemental sulfur may be abundant there in some places.

"Finding a field of stones made of pure sulfur is like finding an oasis in
the desert," said Curiosity project scientist Ashwin Vasavada
<https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/nasas-curiosity-rover-discovers-a-surprise-in-a-martian-rock>
of
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in July.

"It shouldn't be there, so now we have to explain it. Discovering strange
and unexpected things is what makes planetary exploration so exciting."

https://www.sciencealert.com/curiosity-cracked-open-a-rock-on-mars-and-found-a-big-surprise