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Characterization and Calibration of the CheMin Mineralogical Instrument on Mars Science Laboratory |
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| Authors: | David Blake David Vaniman Cherie Achilles Robert Anderson David Bish Tom Bristow Curtis Chen Steve Chipera Joy Crisp David Des?Marais Robert T. Downs Jack Farmer Sabrina Feldman Mark Fonda Marc Gailhanou Hongwei Ma Doug W. Ming Richard V. Morris Philippe Sarrazin Ed Stolper Allan Treiman Albert Yen |
| Affiliation: | 1. Exobiology Branch, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, 94035-1000, USA 2. Planetary Science Institute, 1700 E. Fort Lowell, Tucson, AZ, 85719-2395, USA 3. ESCG/Hamilton Sundstrand, 2224 Bay Area Blvd., Houston, TX, 77058, USA 5. Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Dr., Pasadena, CA, 91109-8099, USA 6. Dept. of Geological Sciences, Indiana University, 1001 East Tenth St., Bloomington, IN, 47405, USA 7. Exobiology Branch, MS 239-4, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, 94035-1000, USA 8. Chesapeake Energy Corp., 6100 N. Western Ave., Oklahoma City, OK, 73118, USA 9. Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721-0077, USA 10. School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287, USA 11. Space Science Division, MS 245-1, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, 94035-1000, USA 12. Faculté des Sciences et Techniques, Avenue Escadrille Normandie Niemen, Service 262, 13397, Marseille Cedex 20, France 4. Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, 2101 NASA Road 1, Houston, TX, 77058-3696, USA 13. SETI Institute, 189 Bernardo Ave., Mountain View, CA, 94043, USA 14. MC 206-31, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, 91125, USA 15. Lunar and Planetary Institute, 3600 Bay Area Blvd., Houston, TX, 77058-1113, USA |
| Abstract: | A principal goal of the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover Curiosity is to identify and characterize past habitable environments on Mars. Determination of the mineralogical and chemical composition of Martian rocks and soils constrains their formation and alteration pathways, providing information on climate and habitability through time. The CheMin X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) instrument on MSL will return accurate mineralogical identifications and quantitative phase abundances for scooped soil samples and drilled rock powders collected at Gale Crater during Curiosity’s 1-Mars-year nominal mission. The instrument has a Co X-ray source and a cooled charge-coupled device (CCD) detector arranged in transmission geometry with the sample. CheMin’s angular range of 5° to 50° 2θ with <0.35° 2θ resolution is sufficient to identify and quantify virtually all minerals. CheMin’s XRF requirement was descoped for technical and budgetary reasons. However, X-ray energy discrimination is still required to separate Co?Kα from Co?Kβ and Fe?Kα photons. The X-ray energy-dispersive histograms (EDH) returned along with XRD for instrument evaluation should be useful in identifying elements Z>13 that are contained in the sample. The CheMin XRD is equipped with internal chemical and mineralogical standards and 27 reusable sample cells with either Mylar? or Kapton? windows to accommodate acidic-to-basic environmental conditions. The CheMin flight model (FM) instrument will be calibrated utilizing analyses of common samples against a demonstration-model (DM) instrument and CheMin-like laboratory instruments. The samples include phyllosilicate and sulfate minerals that are expected at Gale crater on the basis of remote sensing observations. |
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