Layer
Name
Sublimation residue made of Magnetite 63wt%, NH4-nontronite 22wt%, Antigonite 9wt%, Dolomite 6wt%
Order
2
Type of layer
granular
Texture
other
Type of porosity
particulate
Comments
The layer is a porous structure, made of pale spheres of nontronite "ribbons", embedded in a grey matrix of aggregated mineral grains. The spheres appear to be made of "ribbons" of nontronite (only few micrometers thick) interlaced or connected together. After sublimation of the water, the places previously occupied by the water crystals are now empty, resulting in an high porosity of the sublimation residue, also called sublimation mantle. The observed ribbons are probably the relics of the water crystals interfaces.
Formation mode
fractionated sublimation
Comments
The layer was produced by sublimation of the ice in the lower layer.
Number
4
Arrangement
heterogeneous mixing
Materials
  Name Arrangement Mass (g) Mass fraction Abundance comments
Porous spheres made of NH4-nontronite 0.22
Magnetite powder 0-36µm 0.63
Antigorite powder 0-36µm 0.09
Dolomite powder 0-36µm 0.06