The Rover, Barnacle Bill, and Yogi.
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NASA

Results from Mars Pathfinder

These are the findings of Mars Pathfinder.

  • High Silica Rocks - a result from chemical analysis of the Martian rocks.
    • suggestive of differentiated (evolved) rocks and minerals.
    • helps establish that, like Earth, Mars experienced mineral separation, evolution, and differentiation of the silica rocks (the same rocks which are important to terrestrial planet formation).
  • Rounded Pebbles, Cobbles and possible Conglomerates were found - a result from analysis of the landingsite, the rocks, the soils, and erosion patterns.
    • suggestive of fluvial processes over a long time
    • suggestive of liquid water in equilibrium with the atmosphere
    • suggestive of a warmer & wetter Martian past
  • Airborne Dust is Magnetic
    • chemical analysis of the dust shows that iron seems to be leached from the crust by an active hydrologic process
  • Better Moment of Inertia measurement (the shape of Mars)
    • suggests Mars has a large core
  • Landing site is as expected
    • validates the use of ground-based measurements
    • showed a variety of rocks deposited by a catastrophic flood
    • questions remain about the deposition conditions, variety, and origin of the rocks
    • other remaining questions include: how fast, & where was the Martian water flowing, what was the capacity of the flood?
  • Atmosphere
    • water ice clouds were found
    • dust devils
    • predictable local weather
These findings help address questions which remain about Mars.


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