FROM SNC METEORITES TO THE CURIOSITY ROVER: INSIGHTS INTO MARTIAN PETROLOGY AND VOLATILES (Invited Presentation)

As part of this special session honoring the contributions of Edward M. Stolper, I will review the impact of his work, spanning almost four decades, on our understanding of martian petrology and volatile history. This work began when, through collaborations with Hap McSween, they strongly suggested that an odd group of achondrites might in fact be samples of Mars. The martian origin of the SNC meteorites (now widely referred to as “martian meteorites”) has led to countless studies and rich insight into the history of Mars that would simply not have been possible through spacecraft exploration alone.

In addition to early petrogenetic studies of these martian rocks, Stolper spearheaded pioneering measurements of volatiles and isotopic compositions in martian meteorites that have led to a proliferation of findings and interpretations concerning the history of volatiles on Mars. These results point to a complex hydrologic cycle on Mars worthy of further exploration. More recently, he has produced insights into the variety of martian magmas through in situ studies with the Curiosity rover. Overall, Stolper has had a profound effect on our understanding of martian geochemistry and petrology. I will discuss this impact and look to the future as we build on his rich insights.