Why is Rio Tinto like Mars?
The Rio Tinto is located in the Iberian Pyrite Belt, a large deposit of sulfide minerals that was formed in an ancient hydrothermal system. The presence of volcanoes and ground ice on Mars suggests that hydrothermal systems should have formed. Mars is rich in iron and sulfur, key ingredients in the formation of sulfide minerals. Basaltic volcanism appears to have been widespread on Mars. On Earth, sulfide minerals are made in hydrothermal systems associated with basaltic volcanism. Thus, mineral deposits like the ones that we are drilling into on MARTE may be found in the martian subsurface.
