Characteristics of sediments include their mineralogical and elemental composition, grain-size distribution, and micromorphology of individual particles. Considerable experience and abundant research outcomes have been accumulated from early telescope observations to current observations by orbital probes, landers, and rovers. Instruments such as the Mars Global Surveyor’s (MGS) Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES), Mars Odyssey’s Thermal Imaging System (THEMIS), Mars Express OMEGA, and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer (MRO/CRISM) have provided valuable data on the overall distribution of various minerals on Mars and detailed mineralogical characteristics of some areas.