『Abstract
Orbital and landed missions to Mars have revealed complex sulfate-
and Fe-oxide-bearing mineralogical assemblages, which have been
interpreted as the result of a late planet-wide acidic period
due to large SO2 emissions. However, this
global scenario does not explain the recent discovery of Hesperian
and Noachian-aged carbonates in several regions, because they
should have been dissolved by the acidic conditions, nor the restriction
of sulfate occurrences in preferential regions. Here we present
the results of a 4-year-long experimental study designed to test
the impact of Fe-sulfides (pyrrhotite Fe0.9S)
on the weathering of basaltic silicates (olivine, clino- and orthopyroxene)
under an early-Martian-like, CO2-rich atmosphere.
Our weathered silicate/sulfide mixtures showed complex parageneses
containing elemental sulfur, hydrated sulfates (gypsum, hexahydrite,
jarosite) and Fe-(oxy)hydroxides. Olivine-only samples produced
nesquehonite, an Mg-carbonate precursor of hydromagnesite and
magnesite. These secondary phases are similar to those observed
in the Martian sulfate- and carbonate-bearing deposits. Therefore,
we propose a geochemical model in which, on the one hand, Martian
sulfates mainly formed from weathering of sulfide-enriched basalts
producing locally acidic environments and, on the other hand,
carbonates were preserved and could even have formed in regions
initially devoid of sulfides, thereby resolving the apparent paradox
arising from the possible coeval formation of the two types of
minerals. These results raise doubts on the need for a global
acidic event to produce the sulfate-bearing assemblages, suggest
that regional sequestration of sulfate deposits is due to regional
differences in sulfide content of the bedrock, and pave the way
for reevaluating the likelihood that early sediments preserved
biosignatures from the earliest times.』
1. Introduction
2. Background: Sulfur on Mars and on Earth
3. Material and methods
3.1. Initial material
3.1.1. Description
3.1.2. Preparation
3.2. Experimental procedures
3.3. Experimental rationale
3.4. Analytical methods
4. Results
4.1. Mineralogy of the weathered samples
4.1.1. Silicate-only samples
4.1.2. Silicate/sulfide mixtures
Olivine + pyrrhotite
Clinopyroxene + pyrrhotite
Orthopyroxene + pyrrhotite
4.1.3. Synthesis
4.2. Near-infrared spectroscopy
4.2.1. Silicate-only samples
4.2.2. Silicate/sulfide mixtures
Orthopyroxene + pyrrhotite
Clinopyroxene + pyrrhotite
Orthopyroxene + pyrrhotite
4.2.3. Synthesis
5. Discussion
5.1. Weathering processes without sulfide
5.2. Weathering processes with sulfide
5.3. Source of oxidation and role of H2O2
6. Implications for sulfates and carbonates on Mars
7. Conclusions
Acknowledgments
Appendix A. Supplementary data
References