QUESTION:
Does Martian surface science activities include having the Sojourner's APXS
analyze soil material underneath small boulders or rocks which haven't been
directly exposed to the high UV radiation bombarding the surface over the
eons?

I'm not a geologist, but maybe we can compare that data to the lunar
chemistry processes that were discovered at sites on the Apollo J-series
missions.

ANSWER from David Mittman on August 14, 1997:
I spoke with one of our scientists, and was able to obtain the following
information:

Although we have made APXS measurements of disturbed soil areas, the intent
was not to expose soil which was protected from UV radiation, but to look
for any compositional differences between the weathered surface material and
material which was somewhat protected from those processes.

As to the comparison of chemical processes between Mars and the Moon, lunar
soil has basically the same composition as lunar rocks, just in smaller
pieces. Martian soil is differentiated from rock material in that it has
been weathered and broken down by wind and water, two elements not found on
the moon.