REALITY IS VIRTUAL: TAKING UNDERGRADUATES ON A FIELD TRIP TO GALE CRATER, MARS

When the Introductory Field Course at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities moved online in response to Covid-19, we leveraged the intrinsically virtual nature of planetary geology to deliver a faithful research experience and introduce students to data sets, tools and methods employed by planetary geologists to map and interpret a field site on Mars. Students constructed geologic maps, cross sections and stratigraphic columns using publicly available visible satellite imagery (HiRISE), topography, and Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover imaging data from the Pahrump Hills and Logan’s Pass regions within Gale crater, Mars. Datasets were provided in stages to encourage hypothesis development, testing and revision; students defined mappable units on the basis of satellite images, and then compared their predictions about contact relationships, lithology and depositional settings to observations of the field site from the rover perspective. This process replicates steps taken within the planetary science community to select, evaluate and explore mission landing sites, providing students with an analogous mapping and interpretive experience without requiring physical presence at the field site.

A significant strength of the Mars mapping project came from its integration into a broader online field course, such that students had executed similar exercises to produce geologic maps and associated products for terrestrial field sites. The field trip to Mars highlighted the commonalities of geology and geologic processes throughout the solar system, as well as demonstrated that methods practiced in the online field course are broadly applicable and transferable skills. A significant challenge throughout the project was overcoming the “alien” nature of the martian landscape; students struggled to connect terrestrial geologic concepts and interpret the depositional environment, though similar challenges were observed in the terrestrial exercises. However, the expectation for revision to various products over the course of the project (i.e., the unit definitions changed with the addition of the rover observations, requiring edits to the initial mapping) encouraged critical thinking and helped students overcome the expectation of a single, “correct” answer.