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Opaline Silica on Mars

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Encyclopedia of Astrobiology

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Definition

Opaline silica (SiO2 · nH2O) occurs at several locations on Mars, although the definitive identification is contentious. The confirmed finding would indicate past aqueous activity. Aqueous free silica is a product of basalt weathering, when the interaction of water with mafic (i.e., Mg- and Fe-rich, silica-poor) rock rapidly dissolves olivine, pyroxene, and glass. Opaline silica could have been precipitated in hydrothermal or lacustrine (related to a lake) evaporitic environments on Mars. On Earth, it rarely persists more than a few million years, because it rapidly transforms into microcrystalline quartz during diagenesis. The persistence of opaline silica on Mars over much longer geologic timescales (billions of years) indicates that water was not present for extended periods of time.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR) e.V., Institut für Planetenforschung, Rutherfordstrasse 2, 12489, Berlin, Germany

    Ernst Hauber

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  1. Ernst Hauber
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Correspondence to Ernst Hauber .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Centro de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    Ricardo Amils

  2. Labo. d'Astrophysique de Bordeaux (LAB), Observatoire Aquitain des Sciences de l'Univers (OASU), Floirac CX, France

    Muriel Gargaud

  3. Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), Inst. Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial, Torrejón de Ardoz, Madrid, Spain

    José Cernicharo Quintanilla

  4. Geophysical Lab., Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, District of Columbia, USA

    Henderson James Cleaves

  5. Astronomy Department, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA

    William M. Irvine

  6. Dépt. Sc. de la Terre et de l’Atmosphère, Université du Québec, Montréal, Montreal, Québec, Canada

    Daniele Pinti

  7. Centre National d'Etudes Spatiale (CNES) DPI/E2U, Paris CX, France

    Michel Viso

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© 2014 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Hauber, E. (2014). Opaline Silica on Mars. In: Amils, R., et al. Encyclopedia of Astrobiology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_1110-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_1110-3

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-27833-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Physics and AstronomyReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Chemistry, Materials and Physics

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