Soil Scoop Zooms

Thought I would start a new topic on this apparently standard observation:

A RAC RGBD focus zoom sequence of soil on the edge of the scoop.

I laughed and laughed when I finally understood what the sequence was.

I first thought this was an attempt to look under the lander and couldn't "make sense" of the results.

Anyway, some pretty bizarre, clumps of, er, yeah, that's it -- clumps of dry dust...

This version has a comment link to the animated version.

( I was going to call the topic Goofy Looks at Mars ( in keeping with the Phoenix fantasy theme ( and rich in puns and double entendres ) ) -- but saner thoughts prevailed. )

I might mention that at the distance of these zooms the best images have a resolution of about 50 microns / pixel -- comprable to the 30 micron resolution of the MER MI camera!

I have done some experimental non-standard processing to arrive at this image so be warned -- nothing is "real" in this 2X image.

ALL of the interesting information was in the shadow area -- so the usual JPG issues are doubly compounded by shadow clipping.

Sigh.

Come on UA / JPL / NASA -- do your magic on one of these sequences.

I sure hope this is the stuff that is still on the scoop to be delivered to all three instruments!

I wonder when NASA will release

Ooops. Didn't complete the thought. I was multi-tasking: talking a friend in Idaho through setting up his e-mail while I was writing the last post.

Anyway, I wonder if NASA will release their "take" on the soil pictures before all the instruments are exercised...

Naaah. Ain't scientificical-like.

Last kick at the can today:

"3D" of scoop soil:

One thing about this clumpy soil...

It will be perfect for making rammed "earth" blocks for building habitats.

-J

I would dissagree, as soon as you compressed this stuff, it would it would release the moisture, SOD's would begin to form, and your habitat, in a short period of time,, would be a flat plain again.
However, i am not a martian soil scientist, but i did stay at a holiday inn, last night.

When will see, or here of some results from of the tests, like the oven at least, since they know that no water was released at the oven, they must know what was..?

I don't believe there's any moisture in the soil.

Jim: There isn't any significant amount of moisture in the soil by the time it's become powdery enough to fall through the mesh into the oven. But, if not by sublimation of moisture, how do you account for the fact that the soil just sits on top of the mesh in clumps for a while, then suddenly falls through? Is the soil magnetic, and does it suddenly lose its magnetism?

Martin,

this is official now, that some white stuff is ice - because they think it sublimates, based on the comparison of pictures taken some time apart.

Do they compare apples and apples? If it is CO2 snow/ice, it surely must form permafrost at winter, and sublimate as exposed to the conditions at the surface today.

But H2O ice would not sublimate under the subzero temperatures and pressure present, would it?

So, how they have had eliminated CO2 ice? It would have to be pretty clever, and would be nice to hear that

es

Jim,

Do you think that Pharaoh will let us use straw to make the bricks? Excuse me, candlesticks, to make the bricks?

Anyone? Was there any explanation regarding the black spot, seen in a photo, above the Martian horizon?

It occurred to me that it probably couldn't be a spot on the camera lens if the cameras are protected from the Martian atmosphere, dust, etc. Dust storms are expected in a couple of months so there must have been a seal over the camera lenses.

Was it one of the orbiters?

moisture can also be frozen h20 (ice). so I do believe there is moisture in the soil, but not liquid water.

Thanks for those images Hort.
It definitely looks like now dried out soil that had recently been wet.

Bob Clark

Bob, you are more than welcome. It is gratifying to see that someone is actually looking at them.

I have to admit profound disappointment that no one else has commented on these images. As far as I know no one else in the world outside of the Phoenix team has processed these images.

There have been over 200 views of these images and your comment was the first actually on the images...

OK, back to Mars.

Sol 26 delivery of soil to MECA OM:

I think the good news is that some of the interesting soil clumps as seen in reply 0 might have made it through the 1 mm openings in the screens. I measured sizes between 1/2 - 1 mm -- so lets keep the fingers crossed.

Looks like sol 27 was a bust -- Phoenix spent the sol in SAFE mode? This was inferred from Mark Lemmons, SSI PI web site. This BTW, is an excellent site for getting a sense of what's happening with Phoenix with regards to the SSI.

Time for my chant ( close eyes. breathe deeply):

WHERE ARE THE RAW OM IMAGES?!

Anyone wann'a give odds that next batch of raw OM's will be released?

Emily L (http://planetary.org/blog) asked about this and was told they were working on captioning for the OM raw files and when that was fixed they would start posting them - supposedly "soon".

Hi Horton... I believe lots of folks are looking at your images, so don't get too discourage if you're not hearing back from everyone. Your work is important!

RE the images in reply 14. I was recently constructing a new deck at our summer camp, pouring gravel & concrete pads for supporting posts. I accidentally left some cement in the bottom of a metal wheelbarrow and it set. Looked a lot like what you see in those photos. Coincidence?

RJS

RJS, thanks for the kind words.

Maybe after all the instruments have had a shot at the soil then we will know more about exactly what kind of cement Mars is mixing!

Horton,

Your images are excellent as usual. I try to look at most of the images that you post on Phoenix and Oppy but your posted images are just the tip of the iceberg. Your online archive of collected and enhanced images is staggering and I wander through there to look at the new stuff when I can. Many a Marsaholic has whiled away the late night and morning hours staring in awe at the gems that you have dug up and brought to light. Many of these gems you have enhanced to bring out formerly unattainable detail. Thanks again for the fantastic timely presentations!

The images that you present in Reply 0 remind me of a clayey silt that was saturated at one time. I wonder if it was saturated by water or if it appears "saturated" because it is a brine liquid/salt and soil matrix.

Are those images representative of clay and silt sized material? What is the scale?
Particles less than 0.08 millimeters are typically considered to be clay and silt sized.

I'd like to offer my regrets for not acknowledging the amazing photos presented here. I am a huge fan of any and all facts regarding space exploration. There never seems to be enough information released.

I recently discovered this site and am in awe of the highly intellectual critiques expressed here. And, you all can spell!

I hope it's ok to peek in here once in a while to see what's up.

Hort, perhaps you could do a close-up color combo of this image:

http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu/images.php?gID=7297&cID=92

It looks like clumps of moist soil sticking to the edge of the scoop.

Bob Clark