After the last two attempts to collect a rock sample came up empty, Perseverance moved on to a different location. This time the drill extracted a sample of a rock that’s so unusual that Perseverance is investigating it in ways never before tried.
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Given this Mars Guy episode and the unusual interest that the science team is showing in the tailings (drill debris) for this latest core sample, I’ve created a quick-and-dirty guide to the tailings produced at the various secured-sample sites to date.
I don’t have too much to add in terms of analysis here at the moment, but I will say that the tailings from the crater rim (#26 and #27) are notably brighter than almost every other tailings pile taken earlier (down in the crater). Tailings from the same environment (e.g. the crater floor, the top of the delta) tend to look similar, despite their notable geological differences. The science of colour in solid materials is actually pretty complex, as any spectroscopist can tell you, so there aren’t always simple explanations for why some materials look different before and after drilling, aside from the fact that the tailings are made of very fine particles.
I’m still working on a (much more detailed) guide for the abrasion patches, which unlike the tailings have received extensive analysis, but I’m happy to take any constructive feedback for this short guide.