Are There Shells on Mars?

Ever
since I encountered these strange yet familiar shapes I have been pondering the possibility of finding such objects - created by living organisms - on Mars. If Mars once had large bodies of water - oceans and shallow seas - along with volcanism, tectonics, and a friendly atmosphere, then most likely something lived in that water.
I
do not know if these images are of shells. I haven't been to Mars. (Not in the physical body, at least) But I know if I saw shapes such as these laying on the ground anywhere on Earth I would surely bend down and have a look at them.
Doing
the computer enhancment thing with the original NASA image, I get shell shapes, non shell shapes and very odd shapes. If you had a look at my Fun with Tricks of Light and Shadow section, you will know that I am mindful of the tricks light and shadow can play.
This
is a simple photographic study of light and color - an exercise in light and shadow. Shadow is color. Color is light. The images that follow represent my endeavor to prove the shells, and to disprove them.
Regardless
of what these objects really are, I think there is still a possibility of finding such things on the surface of Mars, in the Martian stratigraphy, and buried in the mud and sediment of this once watery world.

Images of Mars Pathfinder's Sojourner Rover: Sojourner (tm),Mars Rover (tm) and spacecraft design and images copyright (c) 1996-97, California Institute of Technology. All right reserved. Further reproduction prohibited. JPL and NASA Image Use


The Martian Shells

Above image, from NASA, # 82463. For scale, compare the "shells" to the larger rock on the right, also the bit of airbag at the very bottom of the image. Notice the ripple marks in the sand. Were they made by water or wind?

Larger Image of 82463


A Study in Light


Close Up Embossed
Phylum Mollusca? What looks like a conch-type shell and a bivalve clam or mussel shell.


Same Image, Embossed, Inverted.

The bivalve seems to have changed a lot in this image, but the conch really looks like a mollusc shell partially buried in sand.

Some Examples of Earth Shells

Some Other Kinds of Rocky looking Shells


Large Image of Mars "shells" with Earth shell comparisons

Pieces of...?


Located to the right and slightly up from the "conch shell" in the NASA image,
what looks like pieces of broken shells.


Compare
the Mars image to the image of broken shells from Earth. There are other ways in which these shapes can form. Geological processes produce in rocks what is commonly called onion-skin weathering. This is accomplished by chemical or mechanical (physical) means.
The
processes of spheroidal weathering and exfoliation break down rocks in sucessive shells, plates, sheets or scales. These outer "shells" are gradually spalled or flaked off from the parent rock. This can happen in several ways. For example, as water (carrying various salts and chemicals) penetrates joints and fractures, it attacks the structure of the rock. Exposed areas gradually wear down or are chemically altered.
As
sharp angles and surface points erode, the rock breaks down, or it decays, and the inner core becomes rounded. The outer layers of exfoliation shells weaken and seperate from the original rock mass. This can happen on a large or small scale, above or below ground.
The
following images demonstrate a possible way in which the Martian "broken shell" shapes could have been formed.


Exfoliation - Several Views, Same Rock


With my trusty rock hammer I removed some of the "shell"

Pieces of Onion Skin
Lighter discolorations show changes made by weathering
Redish colors in all images are caused by oxidation

Do they look similar to the Mars rocks?

A Couple of Other Examples

And Then There Are The Ever Popular Geodes


Could the "broken shells" be broken geodes?


A Field of Geodes? From NASA image 81205_full

A Field of Geodes in 3D.
You'll need red and blue 3D glasses for this one

3d analglyph images from NASA's images collection

A Bit of Humor


The Infant Lightandshadowsaurus
Calling to its Mother

Dino fossils? Dare I dream so....

These are a few of the Martian shapes and objects that intrique me, and some examples of how they might be formed. However, what these objects are (if they are not rocks) has not been resolved here. Even further image enhancements seem to create more questions.

Are There Shells on Mars? Part 2


Return to Anomalies on Mars


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