Spectral Analysis of Clay-Bearing Outcrops in Northern Xanthe Terra, Mars

Supporting materials for a 2023 planetary science study by Jérémy Brossier include shapefiles for 313 clay outcrops mapped using CRISM hyperspectral cubes and morphological units from CTX/HiRISE images. The repository also contains a text file with denoised, smoothed, and normalized reflectance spectra for the clay-bearing outcrops. All primary imagery and altimetry datasets are hosted separately on the NASA PDS server.

Use Cases

• Mapping the spatial distribution of clay minerals on Mars based on shapefiles of outcrops.
• Analyzing spectral signatures of Martian clays based on denoised and normalized reflectance values.
• Correlating geological morphology with mineralogy based on combined shapefiles for units and spectra.
• Validating hyperspectral index mapping techniques for clay detection on other planetary bodies.

Strengths

• Includes shapefiles for 313 distinct clay outcrops mapped across a defined area.
• Spectra are processed (denoised, smoothed, normalized) for direct scientific comparison.
• Data is associated with a peer-reviewed publication in the Planetary Science Journal.

Limitations

• Row count and column-level documentation are unknown, limiting suitability assessment.
• The dataset is a supporting material; primary imagery must be sourced separately from NASA PDS.
• Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.

Provenance

Source

Jérémy Brossier, associated with a study published in Planetary Science Journal (2023).

Collection Method

Outcrops mapped using index maps from 10 CRISM hyperspectral targeted cubes; units mapped using CTX and HiRISE images.

Geography

Northern Xanthe Terra, Mars, specifically around coordinates 313E, 13N and Magong crater at 313.4E, 12.1N.