Copper enrichments in the Kimberley formation in Gale crater, Mars: Evidence for a Cu deposit at the source

•Quantification of copper using Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS).•Copper occurrence in fractures, potentially related to adsorption on Mn-oxides.•Copper in sedimentary units suggesting upstream hydrothermal processes that formed a Cu-deposit. Copper quantification with laser induced break...

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Published in:Icarus (New York, N.Y. 1962) N.Y. 1962), 2019-03, Vol.321 (C), p.736-751
Main Authors: Payré, Valérie, Fabre, Cécile, Sautter, Violaine, Cousin, Agnès, Mangold, Nicolas, Deit, Laetitia Le, Forni, Olivier, Goetz, Walter, Wiens, Roger C., Gasnault, Olivier, Meslin, Pierre-Yves, Lasue, Jérémie, Rapin, William, Clark, Ben, Nachon, Marion, Lanza, Nina L., Maurice, Sylvestre
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
ChemCam
Copper deposit
Earth Sciences
Gale crater
GEOSCIENCES
Hydrothermal alteration
Kimberley
planetary sciences
Planetology
Sciences of the Universe
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Summary:•Quantification of copper using Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS).•Copper occurrence in fractures, potentially related to adsorption on Mn-oxides.•Copper in sedimentary units suggesting upstream hydrothermal processes that formed a Cu-deposit. Copper quantification with laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) using a univariate calibration model enables the ChemCam instrument onboard the Curiosity rover to measure unusually elevated Cu concentrations in potassic sandstones and Mn-oxide-bearing fracture fills in the Kimberley region of Gale crater, Mars. Mostly, the copper phases occurring in sedimentary bedrock are associated with detrital silicates, including feldspars, pyroxenes and K-phyllosilicates, likely coming from a potassic igneous source near the northern crater rim, while those present in the fractures are likely adsorbed on the surface of manganese oxides. These two different mineralogical associations imply at least two distinct processes: Cu enrichment in bedrock at the source, likely during crystallization of the igneous silicates, and adsorption of Cu on Mn-oxides precipitated from groundwater that encountered oxidizing conditions within fractures in the bedrock. The potassic sediments enriched in copper may be evidence of a porphyry copper deposit or an impact-induced hydrothermal deposit in the source region.
ISSN:0019-1035
1090-2643
DOI:10.1016/j.icarus.2018.12.015