Unknown process is destroying Mars rocks

Episode 159
Water is the dominant agent of destruction of rocks on Earth. Mars has vanishingly small amounts of water, so wind erosion dominates, but that can’t explain the rotting rocks observed by Perseverance this week.

[@fr3ddyfr3sh]

Thanks

[@MarsGuy]

Thanks so much for continuing to support this channel! Much appreciated and very encouraging.

[@fr3ddyfr3sh]

@@MarsGuy thanks for your invaluable work :)

[@rjung_ch]

Sunday on Earth and we get to watch more what is up on Mars. Thanks Mars Guy! 👍💪✌

[@dalphinezara7879]

Yes

[@MarsGuy]

Happy to oblige!

[@josephd.5524]

One theory was that the big flow into Jezero was more slush and ice than running water. Like that hollow rock from a couple months ago, I wonder if maybe these were chunks of ice that got coasted in Mars mud as it flowed, but once it came to rest the water ice interior gradually fled, leaving the mud coating to slump into place.

[@supersleepygrumpybear]

38% gravity could also mean that water is more viscous than on earth

[@thesjkexperience]

Makes sense. Even the ripple marks look like Honey made the marks or something much more viscous than water. I’m not that into Mars, but I like this. 😊

[@FredPlanatia]

This kind of episode trying to piece together evidence with experience from Earth geology really brings home how geologists work to understand the 'scene of the crime': Rock rot! Thank you Mars Guy!

[@MarsGuy]

Ah, glad you like the detective work!

[@Sherwoody]

Or, there could be an exotic archaea population munching on the rocks.

[@FredPlanatia]

@@Sherwoody

[@jamesryan3572]

One of the best channels on KZbin. Thanks, Mars Guy!

[@MarsGuy]

Thanks for that!

[@douglasdarling7606]

Thank you for calling it a working hypothesis so many these days would have misused the word theory it's why so many of our youth don't understand what it means

[@MarsGuy]

Glad you recognize the difference! Thanks for the comment.

[@ELMS]

Mars has no magnetic field so the solar radiation is intense. Could it be that, over the geologic time scale of millions of years, the radiation would cause the erosion? Glad to see your subs increasing!

[@josephd.5524]

Absolutely, but that kind of erosion doesn't cause the rocks to seemingly deflate; that's more like causing microscopic cracks on the surface that gradually cause tiny flakes to break off. These rocks look more like a potato that had been left outside all winter, it's weird.

[@brucebaxter6923]

Temperature variation would be far more likely

[@coralie9469]

@@josephd.5524 😄Interesting how potatoes seem to come into these comments and conversations, but they do look like that! It's all interesting indeed!

[@oldmech619]

@@coralie9469. Who is leaving potatoes outside all winter? I have never seen one. Can’t even think why would ever would do one.

[@coralie9469]

@@oldmech619 ohhh well you've never seen frozen potatoes or rotten potatoes, I imagine that's what they'd look like only worse, teehee!

[@glencrandall7051]

Will we ever know for sure? Always more questions than answers. Fascinating.🙂🙂

[@TheShootist]

particle embrittlement (neutron, cosmic ray, micrometeors).

[@garyknight8616]

Curiouser and Curiouser. As a chemist, this is intriguing. Great update. Thank you.

[@MarsGuy]

Glad you're intrigued, Chemist Guy!

[@dave8181]

Mars Guy used geography, geology and a chemistry lesson all in one this week!

[@MarsGuy]

Hope you liked it!

[@flamencoprof]

On Earth it is pretty common for bodies of water to have cyclical periods of coarse and fine-grained deposition on the bottom. These layers can be covered and compressed for millions of years before being exposed at the surface again by tectonics, erosion, whatever. Then wind can differentially erode the softer fine-grained material and the coarser layer. I was just last night watching a YT item about rocks in cliffs surrounding my childhood suburb which showed this differential erosion.

[@charleslord2433]

Fascinating hypothesis! Always great to get my Martian geology lesson with my Sunday morning coffee 😁☕

[@MarsGuy]

Glad you enjoy it!

[@TropicalCoder]

I think temperature cycling may have a lot to do with splitting up rocks. We have no experience with such extreme temperature cycling on earth . I try to imagine of those rocks just sitting there for 3 billion years - it is inconceivable amount of time. Almost enough time for rocks to evaporate!

[@Sheaker]

Thank You Mars Guy! I wish we could have much more sample tubes. This one looks interesting!

[@MarsGuy]

Yep, too many interesting rocks!

[@lawrieyoutube4375]

Excellent info. A timescale of billions of years is difficult to fully grasp I think. Making comparisons is a great aid for reasoning. It is a bit easier on Earth (maybe) because we can compare different formations against each other that formed at different times in different conditions and at different rates. Ancient formations can be revealed or concealed in a human lifetime. But on Mars? Those rocks have likely been sitting static for eons and may only have lost a couple of grains every million years or so. It occurs to me that on such timescales even cosmic rays might be sufficient to alter surfaces. Awe is an appropriate word for once. Like others, I marvel all the time that we can sit in our comfy chairs and look in detail at the surface of Mars. Your knowledgeable speculations add dynamism to what might otherwise be seen as an unfathomably barren place.

[@MarsGuy]

Thanks for the encouraging words! Really glad this has got you thinking.

[@lteht6919]

Thanks for another great video. Your channel is awesome and I greatly appreciate your effort.

[@MarsGuy]

So glad you do, thanks!

[@DDodo280]

OMG this is Unacceptable! Whoever's destroying those rocks have to STOP!

[@DDodo280]

There was these kids in my street who used to steal the little plugs on car tires, do you think they're responsible?

[@TonyHammitt]

Thanks Mars Guy! You Rock! 🪨🎸

[@MarsGuy]

Ha ha!

[@caevans61]

That's science.. more questions than answers! Love my weekly Mars Geology lesson. Thx MG!

[@MarsGuy]

Glad you appreciate both!

[@sunlight3542]

Thank you, this is great. A lot can happen over billions of years

[@SirHalifax]

Wonderful work as always. This channel's taught me a lot.

[@MarsGuy]

Great, thanks!

[@dr4d1s]

I cant help but think of the hollow rocks from The Neverending Story. Rockbiter would be sad.

[@coralie9469]

Another great video Mr Mars, thanks! It sure makes you wonder 🤔, why getting those samples is so crucial and exciting!

[@MarsGuy]

Thanks again. Keep on wondering!

[@tomk4199]

That was fascinating, Mars Guy. Thanks!

[@MarsGuy]

Glad you think so!

[@nigelhungerford-symes5059]

Thanks Mars Guy, interesting video

[@MarsGuy]

Glad you think so!

[@AerialWaviator]

Always fascinating observations. This a real 'Dr. Watson' episode of Mars Guy. The question I'm left with is why are outer 'shells' of these rocks not as acceptable to 'rotting' as the interior? It's almost like the outer layer (even below the surface) was treated, or exposed to a process at some point after being broken from a larger rock formation. It's intriguing, as all sides, including the bottom exterior of the rocks has been hardened.

[@MarsGuy]

Good observation. There is a process of "case hardening" in rocks that may explain the outer shells. But water is still needed.

[@JZsBFF]

The puddle that ate the rock.

[@LordDustinDeWynd]

Asteroidal strike splash. And no surface recycling (Earth has tectonics and water) so the stuff from a billion years ago is still there. Asteroid belt is next orbit out, so much more impact activity.

[@misha4422]

Fascinating.

[@jackieking1522]

Without a "renewal" process, it feels remarkable what lots of time can get done. Makes me think of the Iron mountain and the eagles feather definition of infinity.🤗

[@Psycandy]

i think a far more interesting question might be why martian rock weathers at different rates, as evidenced by sand and stone in the same view. Since the slopes of Olympus Mons are homogenous in formation, even random weather would yield a more uniform degradation. Accounting for the variation in density at formation is an interesting notion.

[@rickharold7884]

Super fascinating

[@portow]

Another great video

[@MarsGuy]

Thanks!

[@aidanquick3151]

Incredible

[@jadusiv]

Yeah my first thought was perchlorates+water. Some of the rock may either be older or simply have a different composition or structure that makes it more susceptible to this.

[@richb2229]

Acid would be a good guess at the “rotting rocks” however there could be other explanations such as radiation or a drastic climatic shift.

[@thesjkexperience]

Rocks reach an equilibrium where they are formed. When they come to the surface there is no pressure on the minerals and they need to reach a new equilibrium. Since only wind, no water, causes erosion it’s going to look very different than Earth. Very, very cool! 🎉❤

[@hughezzell10000]

heating/cooling weathering. a common process here on Earth as well.

[@Rmm1722]

Interesting 🤔🎉

[@merky6004]

3:20 Mineralogy class flashback!

[@dontdoitdonnell4750]

If you look at most pictures of rocks on mars. You will see that they are layers which could imply that other normal looking rocks aren't completely solid. Could be a lot of sand stone deposits that change often

[@rais1953]

The very first Mars lander that took photos of the ground around it published in National Geographic showed frost on the ground in the early morning. There is water vapour in the air and at night time temperatures it freezes out. Repeated freezing and vapourising in cracks in the rocks might produce the effects shown here when combined with wind blowing away any small broken fragments during the day.

[@quantumcat7673]

When Mars had liquid water it meant that the atmosphere was thicker and so the wind would have been stronger and produce some of the features we're seeing in those eroded rocks, hypothetically.

[@scottthomas3792]

Excellent video....concepts are explained clearly. These videos should be shown in schools. So, in a way, some rocks are like really, really slow versions of Pop Rocks ...

[@MarsGuy]

Thanks for the encouraging words. Carbonated rocks are real!

[@VanBurenOfficial]

Mars guy is the one true king, someday there will be a colossal statue of you atop Olympus Mons

[@MarsGuy]

Ha! But thanks.

[@ninehundreddollarluxuryyac5958]

Dried up slime mats. Not corroded rocks. A bunch of it is there. When a coy pond or bird-bath is wet for weeks or months, it grows a mat of slimy living stuff on the bottom. When it dries out, the slime cracks and curls up into shapes exactly like this. They have to drive it back and get a better look at those.

[@pixelchi]

I think the water is still around, it's just frozen at some depth which varies depending on where you are on the planet. Wind, creep, saltation and an occasional rockfall pretty much control the erosional process on Mars today.

[@marvinellis1517]

Massive radiation.....😮

[@MrGaborseres]

Cool 😎 👍

[@SlipKnotRicky]

Reminds me of exposed Sandstone that crumble easily.

[@spleefthedude7747]

With the low gravity, rocks will have some bizarre shapes compared to earth.

[@hallowedbethynameyahuah7705]

perhaps it's some kind of plasma phenomenon destroying the structure of the rock

[@albionguy1]

Absolutely weird

[@NielsenWill]

Possibly erosion through electrical discharge.

[@thomasgeorgecastleberry6918]

Unknown process? It looks like erosion to me. Mars has some pretty massive sand storms.

[@bubblesezblonde]

[@costrio]

With lower gravity conditions, sedimentary rocks might not be as dense as those on Earth and more fragile to wind erosion, perhaps, as another contributing factor?

[@user-zj2qp3lr3m]

Mars guy we need a road to drive on

[@alandaters8547]

"Pasta shells" found on Mars by noted Martian geology scholar!

[@JaggedJack1]

Could it simply be wind and sand and time, like you mentioned? Is there enough atmosphere on Mars for that?

[@test74088]

I wonder if it could be unrelated material that accumulated in the depression of the eroded rock and then slumped when conditions like the wind direction or other factors changed.

[@connecticutaggie]

Could it be thermal erosions? Especially if water used to be present?

[@trs4u]

Is there a 'mass flux' erosion element too? Mars has a much less effective ballistic shield than Earth does, which must mean more meteorites reaching the ground at greater speed?

[@Kae6502]

Ruh roh, rock rot!

[@nonsequitor]

Do we know how long the crazy current soil chemistry has been around? It's definitely aggressive enough to weather like that over geological timescales if it's getting into solution even occasionally, potentially excited by the radiation others have mentioned ... Fascinating

[@ThexBorg]

A geologists dream exploration.

[@johndanger8717]

Thanks guy -Mars. Wait I mean thanks Mars guy

[@MarsGuy]

You got it

[@kjnoah]

Or maybe those were rocks that formed around ice or permafrost and after the interior melted, the exterior fell inward.

[@ConradSpoke]

1:18 Obviously paper mache. The jig is up.

[@iggyzorro2406]

you need to ask that guy from TV with the brown suit and crazy hair - maybe ancient earthlings from a lost civilization went there and shot those rocks with their laser guns.

[@simjo59]

Might the "rotting rocks" be composed of sandstone?

[@dougadams9419]

Try thinking UV Solar Radiation with wind blown sand. K.I.S.S.

[@kccorliss3922]

Could rotting rocks produce caves ? Like limestone caves on earth?

[@ericfielding2540]

Yes, sure looks like some kind of chemical weathering and erosion of those rocks. Interesting coincidence that the present obliquity of Mars is similar to the Earth.

[@hallowedbethynameyahuah7705]

I'd love a list of space coincidences

[@cacogenicist]

Mars has metric shitloads of water, not "vanishingly small amounts" -- just not in liquid form.

[@atomatman3104]

THE SUNS RAYS IS CAUSING THIS

[@steampunkstar_raisin]

Hungry aliens. ♥

[@Zindo.Majesty.HisMajesty]

Sandstorms over millions if not billions of years will do that too?

[@flannelshirtdad]

Less "bould". 😂 Lol

[@MarsGuy]

Ha, glad you got it!

[@aldenmoffatt162]

Those are mummies of animals with no bones and castings of mummies that have dried to dust.

[@mrliberty8468]

Radiation and little or no magnetic field my guess.

[@shockwave326]

why does the wind only rot the one rock away why not all the others around it ? electric discharge my friend

[@TheShootist]

Particle (neutron, cosmic ray or micrometeor) embrittlement

[@henrischiffmacher319]

WHY is there no experiment were after drilling in sft ground is a SEED dropt in the hole whit a litlle water and wath if a fast growing seed was opserved ?????? Hw schiffmacher

[@dral9971]

I love these ingenious rovers and am impressed by the thought processes behind them, but geological processes are difficult to understand without geologists - i.e. humans. If we think the history of Mars is important, we need to have "boots on the ground". Then one can always ask whether Mars is the most interesting object in our solar system. Titan and Europa look more attractive.

[@JONINXBOX]

It’s things like this that remind me that Mars is essentially a radiated wasteland.. interesting for robotic exploration but why in the hell would it even be considered a viable idea to send humans to live there before setting up the Moon for example as a slightly more bearable habitat and much closer to earth should things go wrong…

[@jeffreyyoung4104]

How about the killing levels of UV light, and other radiation due to no atmosphere?

[@benyomovod6904]

On Earth we know about bacterias, living in and from stone

[@sstrick500]

0:58 Conspiracy theorists will say, "ALIEN MADE POTTERY! OBVIOUSLY"

[@Yezpahr]

I've only seen Mars represented as a desert. It's hard to believe that oceans and lakes existed there for **billions** of years. How exactly do we know if Mars even had enough atmosphere to keep the pressure for liquid water? Or is that deduced from the observation of water-affected soil?

[@MarsGuy]

Lakes existed on Mars billions of years ago, not for billions of years.

[@Yezpahr]

@@MarsGuy I completely misunderstood 3:06, my bad. But I'm still interested, how long did lakes exist on Mars? I hear a lot of estimates from different places but what's your take on it?

[@MarsGuy]

@@Yezpahr No worries. I think the estimate for the lake in Gale crater is on order of a million years, which seems reasonable given the thick stack of fine layers, but I haven't really look at this issue.

[@yahwea]

Not unusual for rocks to "rot" as we see that upon the faces of dressed basalt in the Giza plateau. Our Sun is fully capable of doing just that.

[@kevinevans7507]

A giant bubble of rusty mud eroded by tonic water and (weak?) sulphuric acid ... why not.

[@jayworldjs]

Sublimation.

[@Nobilangelo]

Mars not longer rocks... ;-)

[@Culturedropout]

Rock-eating bacteria?

[@istvansipos9940]

Alien engines did it. Mainly to support the algorithm on this channel.

[@czarcastic1458]

HAHA PFFT

[@iamtheoffenderofall]

I'll wager intense solar radiation. That's why humans will never set foot on that planet.

[@beaverbuoy3011]

:D

[@Derpy1969]

It’s funny when people talk about what they know nothing about.

[@eustacequinlank7418]

Carry on…