Martian surface Mensae contain thick glaciers covered by a mantle of rocky debris. Martian surface The study of surface characteristics (or surface properties and processes) is a broad category of Mars science that examines the nature of the materials making up the Martian surface. The study evolved from telescopic and remote-sensing techniques developed by astronomers to study planetary surfaces. However, it has increasingly become a subdiscipline of geology as automated spacecraft bring ever-improving resolution and instrument capabilities. By using characteristics such as color, albedo, and thermal inertia and analytical tools such as reflectance spectroscopy and radar, scientists are able to study the
Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons Yellowknife Bay area in the Glenelg terrain. On August 19, 2015, NASA scientists reported that the DAN instrument on "Curiosity" detected an unusual hydrogen-rich area, at "Marias Pass," on Mars. The hydrogen found seemed related to water or hydroxyl ions in rocks within three feet beneath the rover, according to the scientists. Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons The Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons (DAN) instrument is an experiment mounted on the Mars Science Laboratory "Curiosity" rover. It is a pulsed sealed-tube neutron source and detector used to measure hydrogen or ice and water at or near the Martian surface. DAN was provided