With the arrival of the Curiosity rover, a new phase begins in the study of Mars—one that includes a variety of geologists and climate scientists more accustomed to working on our own blue planet. Linda Kah has spent her career studying the earth’s deep past in locations as far-flung as the Canadian Arctic and the deserts of West Africa. Her research focuses on understanding the long-term evolution of a planet, looking in particular at the chemistry of ancient oceans and atmospheres and the conditions of early life. As work in West Africa became increasingly hazardous, she was happy to be asked to extend her research horizons to an even more remote locality. As part of the team responsible for Curiosity’s cameras, she hopes to have gotten her first look at rocks on the Martian surface by the time ScienceWriters2012 convenes.

Attendees who register at the CASW website can download background material and the presentation at http://casw.org/new-horizons/new-horizons-science-2012/briefs/mauritania....