Meridianiite

Meridianiite, MgSO₄•11H₂O, is a recently discovered mineral named after the cratered plain of Meridiani Planum on Mars. The mineral is only stable at cold temperatures and until 2008, was only known as a synthetic material. However, data collected on Mars by the Opportunity Mars Exploration Rover suggested that it may be a natural mineral, and Ronald Peterson, professor of geology at Queen’s University in Kingston, Canada, sought to find it in frozen ponds in British Columbia, once mined for magnesium sulfate. The results of Professor Peterson's discovery will be published in the October 2008 issue of American Mineralogist.