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Research dossier · General Reference

El Capitan (Mars)

rock outcrop on Mars

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General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionSep 11, 2025
Entity authorityQ4804701 ↗
Source-derived summary

El Capitan is a layered rock outcrop found within the Margaritifer Sinus quadrangle (MC-19) region of the planet Mars, this geological outcrop was first discovered and observed by the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity in February 2004. The rock outcrop was named for El Capitan, a topographical mountain lying within the state of Texas.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “El Capitan (Mars)” as rock outcrop on Mars. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Capitan, Mars and rock.

Editorial reviewA concise reference frame for defining the subject, testing terminology and identifying the institution closest to the evidence. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—2004—that can be checked directly. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Capitan, Mars and rock providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “El Capitan (Mars)”, the useful work is to connect “rock outcrop on Mars” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 11, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q4804701. Authority coordinates are -1.900, 354.500. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2004.

Critical limits

The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

Best used for
  • Subject orientation
  • Search vocabulary
  • Locating named sources
Verify next

The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “El Capitan (Mars)”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow El Capitan (Mars) primary sources, El Capitan (Mars) archive and Capitan research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “El Capitan (Mars)”?
  2. Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
  3. What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Subject index

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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “El Capitan (Mars)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.