MSc Thesis Defence: Characterizing the mineral composition of Jezero crater using Fe-Mn, (SO3 + Cl) wt.% distributions and the stoichiometric minerology identified using data from PIXL on-board Perseverance, Mars 2020
MSc Candidate
Salvador Fernandez
Abstract
Mineral stoichiometry was applied to PIXL (Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry) data using the Mineral Identification Protocol (MIP_SF) characterizing minerals sampled from the first two years of the Mars 2020 rover mission that landed in Jezero crater in February 2021. MIP_SF identifies minerals by comparing elemental compositions to known stoichiometries, detecting common basaltic minerals with high accuracy. Fe-Mn ratios and (SO3 + Cl) wt.% compositions categorize samples into low and...