<blockquote>
<p>Curiosity has actually <a href="https://mars.nasa.gov/raw_images/206000/?site=msl" rel="nofollow noreferrer">seen these types of features before</a>, which are called diagenetic crystal clusters. Diagenetic means the recombination or rearrangement of minerals, and these features consist of three-dimensional crystal clusters, likely made of a combination of minerals.</p>
<p>Curiosity deputy project scientist Abigail Fraeman said on Twitter that these features that were seen previously were made of salts called sulfates.</p>
<p>embedded tweet</p>
<p>From studies of previous features like this found on Mars (<a href="https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20150003048" rel="nofollow noreferrer">you can read a paper on them here</a>), originally the feature was embedded within a rock, which eroded away over time. These mineral clusters, however, appear to be resistant to erosion.</p>
<p>Another name for these features is concretion, which you may remember from the Opportunity rover, who saw features that were nicknamed '<a href="https://www.universetoday.com/9666/earth-has-blueberries-too/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">blueberries</a>,' since they were small and round. You can see round concretions next to the flower-like feature in this image.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>and later</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Curiosity found another <a href="https://www.universetoday.com/99457/about-that-flower-on-mars/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">flower-like feature</a> back in 2013, and the Spirit rover found similar-looking rocks that were nicknamed 'cauliflower' features because of their knobby protuberances.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>My impression is that some of these are collections of small crystals that have become chemically &quot;stuck together&quot; in a process which involves liquid water. Some terms might be well defined classes, others may be colloquialisms, but I feel a bit lost with all of these terms.</p>
<p><strong>Question:</strong> Blueberries, cauliflower, chert, concretions, accretions and diagenetic crystal clusters on Mars, can you help me sort these all out?</p>
<hr />
<p>Image below is from the linked article, and the title in the image URL is</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Blackthorn Salt Mineral Formation And Rocks On Mars</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The original can be found at <a href="https://mars.nasa.gov/raw_images/1029787/?site=msl" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://mars.nasa.gov/raw_images/1029787/?site=msl</a></p>
<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/ROV6T.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/ROV6T.jpg" alt="&quot;flower&quot; Blackthorn Salt Mineral Formation And Rocks On Mars" /></a></p>
<blockquote>
<p>(NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill/Flickr/CC BY 2.0)</p>
</blockquote>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-02-28T06:27:22.200Z
i wonder if the one in your picture might be a fulgurite(sand melted by ligtening)if it is it means there was lightening on mars in the past,this might be important in understanding how mars evolved.
trond hansen
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-02-28T11:20:44.430Z
@trondhansen There's lightening on Mars today, sandstorms are highly charged environments that produce a lot of lightening strikes.
Ash
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-02-28T12:13:37.227Z
@trondhansen I don't think these can be fulgurite because these are less than a centimeter in size, but I can't say for sure that excludes it. However possibility of lightning on Mars these days is discussed in [How strong is the electric charge capacity of Martian dust storms?](https://space.stackexchange.com/q/5335/12102) and there certainly could have been a lot of it back when there was more of an atmosphere and surface water.
uhoh
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-03-02T11:32:41.413Z
@trondhansen some discussion here: https://youtu.be/1V-lj-jCqe8?t=406
uhoh
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-03-02T14:39:25.427Z
@uhoh thank you for the link,my comment is just me thinking out loud and it had been better to post it in chat.
trond hansen
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-26T10:12:52.450Z
@trondhansen there's a bounty, it expires in 3 days (plus a 24 hour invisible grace period)
uhoh
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-05-26T12:48:52.850Z
@uhoh i do not think i can answer this one but i hope you will get this question answered.
trond hansen
<sedimentology><terminology><mars>
Blueberries, cauliflower, chert, concretions, accretions and diagenetic crystal clusters on Mars, can you help me sort these all out?
uhoh
# Blueberries, cauliflower, chert, concretions, accretions and diagenetic crystal clusters on Mars, can you help me sort these all out?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2022-02-28)

> Curiosity has actually [seen these types of features before](https://mars.nasa.gov/raw_images/206000/?site=msl), which are called diagenetic crystal clusters. Diagenetic means the recombination or rearrangement of minerals, and these features consist of three-dimensional crystal clusters, likely made of a combination of minerals.
>
> Curiosity deputy project scientist Abigail Fraeman said on Twitter that these features that were seen previously were made of salts called sulfates.
>
> embedded tweet
>
> From studies of previous features like this found on Mars ([you can read a paper on them here](https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20150003048)), originally the feature was embedded within a rock, which eroded away over time. These mineral clusters, however, appear to be resistant to erosion.
>
> Another name for these features is concretion, which you may remember from the Opportunity rover, who saw features that were nicknamed '[blueberries](https://www.universetoday.com/9666/earth-has-blueberries-too/),' since they were small and round. You can see round concretions next to the flower-like feature in this image.

and later

> Curiosity found another [flower-like feature](https://www.universetoday.com/99457/about-that-flower-on-mars/) back in 2013, and the Spirit rover found similar-looking rocks that were nicknamed 'cauliflower' features because of their knobby protuberances.

My impression is that some of these are collections of small crystals that have become chemically "stuck together" in a process which involves liquid water. Some terms might be well defined classes, others may be colloquialisms, but I feel a bit lost with all of these terms.

**Question:** Blueberries, cauliflower, chert, concretions, accretions and diagenetic crystal clusters on Mars, can you help me sort these all out?

---

Image below is from the linked article, and the title in the image URL is

> Blackthorn Salt Mineral Formation And Rocks On Mars

The original can be found at <https://mars.nasa.gov/raw_images/1029787/?site=msl>

[!["flower" Blackthorn Salt Mineral Formation And Rocks On Mars](https://i.sstatic.net/ROV6T.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/ROV6T.jpg)

> (NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill/Flickr/CC BY 2.0)

**Tags:** sedimentology, terminology, mars

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: i wonder if the one in your picture might be a fulgurite(sand melted by ligtening)if it is it means there was lightening on mars in the past,this might be important in understanding how mars evolved.  
> **username_2**: @username_1 There's lightening on Mars today, sandstorms are highly charged environments that produce a lot of lightening strikes.  
> **username_0**: @username_1 I don't think these can be fulgurite because these are less than a centimeter in size, but I can't say for sure that excludes it. However possibility of lightning on Mars these days is discussed in [How strong is the electric charge capacity of Martian dust storms?](https://space.stackexchange.com/q/5335/12102) and there certainly could have been a lot of it back when there was more of an atmosphere and surface water.  
> **username_0**: @username_1 some discussion here: https://youtu.be/1V-lj-jCqe8?t=406  
> **username_1**: @username_0 thank you for the link,my comment is just me thinking out loud and it had been better to post it in chat.  
> **username_0**: @username_1 there's a bounty, it expires in 3 days (plus a 24 hour invisible grace period)  
> **username_1**: @username_0 i do not think i can answer this one but i hope you will get this question answered.  

---

## 0 answers

