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Date Entered: May, 1989
Date Last Revised: March, 1991
Candor Chasma is an east-west trending trough associated with Valles Marineris. Valles Marineris, known as Canyonlands, is made up of grabens, canyons, pit craters and channels. The canyon walls exhibit horizontal layering. See Site 022 - Candor Mensa.
Scientific Rationale
If site was locus of ground water discharge in the past, then microbial minerals precipitated by ancient iron bacteria might be concentrated at heads of channels, at sapping sites, along base of valley wall scarps, and in lake sediments where the oxycline impinged upon the basin.
Objectives
To collect weakly indurated iron ore at red and black patches to scan with microscope for morphologically distinct Fe and Mn oxide minerals that might have been precipitated by ancient iron bacteria. (Success is unknown regarding presence of bacteria. Location easily reached.)
Potential Problems
Landing inside Valles Marineris troughs.
Trafficability
1 to 2.
Estimated Traverse Distance
50 km.
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