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PHOTO INDEX OF PRIMARY TARGETS ASTEROIDS COMETS EARTH JUPITER KUIPER BELT MARS MERCURY METEORITES NEPTUNE OORT CLOUD PLUTO SATURN SOLAR SYSTEM SPACE SUN URANUS VENUS ORDER PRINTS OTHER PHOTO INDEXES ALL TARGETS PHOTO CATEGORIES SCIENCEVIEWS AMPHIBIANS BIRDS BUGS FINE ART FOSSILS INDIAN INDIAN MAMMALS OTHER PARKS PLANTS RELIGIOUS REPTILES ROCKS & MINERALS SCIENCEVIEWS PRINTS

A Rainbow of Martian Elements Target Name:   Mars Spacecraft:   Mars Exploration Rover Instrument:   Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer Produced by:   NASA/JPL/Max-Planck-Institute for Chemistry Copyright:  NASA Copyright Free Policy Date Released:  20 January 2004 Related Documents NASA Mars Rover's First Soil Analysis Yields Surprises Mars Exploration Rover Mission Mars Download Options Name Type Width x Height Size PIA05114.jpg JPEG 720 x 486 45K PIA05114.tif TIFF 720 x 486 1 megabyte This graph or spectrum taken by the alpha particle X-ray spectrometer onboard the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit shows the variety of elements present in the soil at the rover's landing site. In agreement with past missions to Mars, iron and silicon make up the majority of the martian soil. Sulfur and chlorine were also observed as expected. Trace elements detected for the first time include zinc and nickel. These latter observations demonstrate the power of the alpha particle X-ray spectrometer to pick up the signatures of elements too faint to be seen before. The alpha particle X-ray spectrometer uses alpha particles and X-rays to measure the presence and abundance of all major rock-forming elements except hydrogen.

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