The mineral diversity of Mars is inferior to Earth
Scientists from the Carnegie Institution in Washington have found that Mars is much poorer than Earth in terms of the number and types of minerals. Only 161 minerals have been found on the red planet for more than 50 years of research, while about 6 thousand are known on our planet. The results of the study were published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets (JGR: Planets).
According to scientists, the reason for this difference lies in the different conditions and processes that formed the bowels of the planets. There were 57 ways of mineral formation on Earth, including plate tectonics, hydrothermal activity, erosion, oxidation and biological effects. On Mars, there were only 20 such mechanisms.
In ancient times, both planets had similar ways of mineral formation. For example, the first ores on Earth and Mars most likely crystallized from cooling magma.
However, over time, the Earth has become a more dynamic and diverse planet, where complex and diverse processes have taken place that contribute to the formation of new minerals. Mars, on the other hand, remained a more static and monotonous planet on which such processes did not occur.
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