The Mini-TES is used for identifying promising rocks and soils for closer examination, and to determine the processes that formed Martian rocks. It measures the infrared radiation that the target rock or object emits in 167 different wavelengths, providing information about the target's composition. One particular goal is to search for minerals that were formed by the action of water, such as carbonates and clays. The instrument can also look skyward to provide temperature profiles of the Martian atmosphere and detect the abundance of dust and water vapor.