Dark Horizon Marks Intriguing Layer on Mars

HiRISE images reveal an intriguing marker horizon among the rocks near Mount Sharp is Gale Crater, which is more erosion resistant than layers above and below.

IMAGE: The marker horizon (yellow arrow) is darker, smoother, and harder than the sulfate-bearing rocks surrounding it. HiRISE image merged to a Digital Terrain Model (DTM) perspective view showing approximately 1 kilometer of topography across Mount Sharp. Image features three times vertical exaggeration. CREDIT: NASA/University of Arizona

A press release was issued from the Planetary Science Institute that looks at an intriguing darker layer of rocks on Mars at…