A sink for methane on Mars? The answer is blowing in the wind

Tumbling experiments that mimic the wind erosion of quartz grains in an atmosphere of C-13-enriched methane are reported. The eroded grains are analyzed by C-13 and Si-29 solid-state NMR techniques after several months of tumbling. The analysis shows that methane has reacted with the eroded surface to form covalent Si-CH3 bonds, which stay intact for temperatures up to at least 250 degrees C. The NMR findings offer an explanation for the fast disappearance of methane on Mars. (C) 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.