Scientists use machine learning algorithms to determine the possible sources of Martian meteorites

2024-03-15

The Tooting Crater on Mars is a large and relatively young crater. Mars crater expert Peter Mouginis Mark has identified this landmark and named it Tooting after his birthplace in the suburbs of London. Anthony Lagain, a planetary scientist at Curtin University in Australia, led a study published this week in Nature Communications that tracked the sources of some Martian meteorites discovered on Earth.

According to researchers, it is known that 166 Martian rocks have landed on our planet over the past 20 million years, but it is difficult to trace their precise origins on Mars. The research team created a database containing 90 million craters on Mars and used machine learning algorithms to narrow down potential meteorite launch sites. Tooting matches a set of Martian meteorites (classified as "shergottites") discovered on Earth.

"By observing the location of secondary impact craters - or small craters formed by ejecta from larger craters recently formed on the planet - we found that Tooting crater is the most likely source of these meteorites ejected from Mars 1.1 million years ago," Lagain said in a statement on Wednesday.

Knowing where these meteorites come from can help fill in the missing information about Mars and its geological processes. Tooting Crater is located in an area known for its volcanic history, formed in an area shaped by lava flows.

"This discovery suggests that volcanic eruptions occurred in this region 300 million years ago, which is very recent from a geological time scale. It also provides new insights into the planetary structure beneath this volcanic region," said co first author Gretchen Benedix, a cosmomineralogist and astrogeologist at Curtin University.

Having fragments of Mars on Earth can tell scientists a lot about this red planet. Thiswhy NASA is working hard to bring back rock samples through the Perseverance spacecraft and future Mars sample return missions.

Scientists use machine learning algorithms to determine the possible sources of Martian meteorites