Visit To Peruvian Mars Analog

Pampas de La Joya Desert:

 

The desertic region of La Joya is located in the region of Arequipa, 40 km from the city of Arequipa, nearby the Panamerican highway heading south. It is not an are of easy access as both its environmental conditions and the constant increasement of habitational invasions. Due to sand dunes and rocky zones, a 4x4 truck will be necessary to access this some zones. It is recommended to bring plenty of food, water and a GPS to track the site’s coordinates as it is quite easy to get lost once the sun goes down.

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The hyper-arid soils of the desert belong to 20 million years ago which simulate an ancient Mars in an epoch when it was in the process of losing water. The La Joya desertic soil has a great resemblance to the martian regolith, a primitive soil with the right amount of organic matter.

 

As part of the event program, on August 7th we will visit the Pampas of La Joya Desert to know the main analog places to the planet Mars, which are: Zona Roja , Mar de cuarzo , Zona de Gallinazos  y Zona de dunas.

 

 

Some videos about Pampas de La Joya Desert: