¹Jeff A. Berger et al. (>10)
Journal of Geophysical Research, Planets (in Press) Link to Article [DOI: 10.1002/2017JE005290]
Department of Earth Sciences, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
Published by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons

Zinc and germanium enrichments have been discovered in sedimentary rocks in Gale Crater, Mars, by the Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) on the rover Curiosity. Concentrations of Zn (910 ± 840 ppm) and Ge (65 ± 58 ppm) are 10s-100s of times greater than in Martian meteorites and estimates for average silicate Mars. Enrichments occur in diverse rocks including minimally to extensively altered basaltic and alkalic sediment. The magnitude of the enrichments indicates hydrothermal fluids, but Curiosity has not discovered unambiguous hydrothermal mineral assemblages. We propose that Zn- and Ge-rich hydrothermal deposits in the source region were dispersed in siliciclastic sediments during transport into the crater. Subsequent diagenetic mobilization and fractionation of Zn and Ge is evident in a Zn-rich sandstone (Windjana; Zn ~4000 ppm, Ge ~85 ppm) and associated Cl-rich vein (Stephen; Zn ~8000 ppm, Ge ~60 ppm), in Ge-rich veins (Garden City; Zn ~1300 ppm, Ge ~650 ppm), and in silica-rich alteration haloes leached of Zn (30-200 ppm). In moderately to highly altered silica-rich rocks, Ge remained immobile relative to leached elements (Fe, Mn, Mg, Ca), consistent with fluid interaction at pH << 7. In contrast, cross-cutting Ge-rich veins at Garden City suggest aqueous mobilization as Ge-F complexes at pH < 2.5. Multiple jarosite detections by the CheMin XRD and variable Zn concentrations indicate diagenesis of lower Mt. Sharp bedrock under acidic conditions. The enrichment and fractionation of Zn and Ge constrains fluid events affecting Gale sediments and can aid in unraveling fluid histories as Curiosity’s traverse continues.