Hydrothermal deposits on Mars

Hydrothermal deposits on Mars. (A) This image was acquired by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter's High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment camera on November 22, 2006.  It shows a bright plateau of layered rocks about 90 meters (98 yards) across called, “Home Plate.”  NASA image: PSP_001513_1655_red; Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona.  “x” marks the locations of the rover images in B and C.  (B) This approximately true-color image was acquired by the panchromatic camera on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover, Spirit, on May 6, 2007.  It shows a patch of bright, silica-rich soil that was exposed when Spirit drove over it.  The track of disturbed soil is about 20 centimeters (8 inches) wide.  NASA Image: PIA09491; Image Credit: NASA/JPL/Cornell. (C) This approximately true-color image was acquired by the panchromatic camera on NASA's Mars Exploration Rover, Spirit, on March 13, 2006.  It is about 1 meter across at the base.  It shows the nodular morphology of opaline silica outcrops adjacent to Home Plate. Image modified from Ruff et al., 2020 (https://doi.org/10.1089/ast.2019.2044).