Did life exist on Mars? Search for organic and inorganic signatures, one of the goals for “SAM” (sample analysis at Mars)

Observation of Mars shows signs of a past Earth-like climate, and, in that case, there is no objection to the possible development of life, in the underground or at the surface, as in the terrestrial primitive biosphere. Sample analysis at Mars (SAM) is an experiment which may be proposed for atmospheric, ground and underground in situ measurements. One of its goals is to bring direct or indirect information on the possibility for life to have developed on Mars, and to detect traces of past or present biological activity. With this aim, it focuses on the detection of organic molecules: volatile organics are extracted from the sample by simple heating, whereas refractory molecules are made analyzable (i.e. volatile), using derivatization technique or fragmentation by pyrolysis. Gaseous mixtures thus obtained are analyzed by gas chromatography associated to mass spectrometry. Beyond organics, carbonates and other salts are associated to the dense and moist atmosphere necessary to the development of life, and might have formed and accumulated in some places on Mars. They represent another target for SAM. Heating of the samples allows the analysis of structural gases of these minerals (CO₂ from carbonates, etc.), enabling to identify them. We also show, in this paper, that it may be possible to discriminate between abiotic minerals, and minerals (shells, etc.) created by living organisms.     

用于火星表面生命信息探测的激光拉曼技术进展

生命信息探测一直是深空探测中重要的一个部分。简要介绍了拉曼光谱技术探测有机物的优势和火星生命信息探测进展,以及常见的火星生命信息探测技术;重点概述了国内外用于火星有机物和生命信息探测的激光拉曼光谱技术的进展,分析总结了火星表面有机物质探测技术的发展趋势;最后简要概述了拉曼光谱技术在火星探测领域的发展前景。     

γ-ray spectroscopy in Mars orbit during solar proton events

Understanding the evolution of Mars requires determining the composition of the surface and atmosphere of the planet. The European Space Agency’s ExoMars rover mission, which is expected to launch in 2016, is part of the Aurora programme. The instruments on the rover will search for evidence of life on Mars and will map a sub-section of the Martian surface, extracting compositional information. Currently our understanding of the bulk composition (and mineralogy) of Mars relies on orbital data from instruments on-board satellites such as 2001 Mars Odyssey, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and Mars Express, in addition to in-situ instrumentation on rovers such as Spirit and Opportunity. γ-ray spectroscopy can be used to determine the composition of Mars, but it has yet to be successfully carried out in-situ on Mars. This study describes some of the results obtained from the γ-ray spectrometer on 2001 Mars Odyssey during solar proton events and discusses whether the increased emissions are useful in γ-ray spectroscopy. The study shows that although increased γ-ray emissions were expected from the Martian surface during a solar proton event, they were not detected from orbit probably due to insufficient signal-to-background. However, this does not preclude the possibility of measuring changes in γ-ray flux corresponding to changes in solar activity on the surface of the planet.     

Annual solar UV exposure and biological effective dose rates on the Martian surface.

The ultraviolet (UV) environment of Mars has been investigated to gain an understanding of the variation of exposure throughout a Martian year, and link this flux to biological effects and possible survival of organisms at the Martian surface. To gain an idea of how the solar UV radiation varies between different regions, including planned landing sites of two future Mars surface missions, we modelled the total solar UV surface flux throughout one Martian year for two different dust scenarios. To understand the degree of solar UV stress on micro-organisms and/or molecules essential for life on the surface of Mars, we also calculated the biologically effective dose (BED) for T7 and Uracil in relevant wavelength regions at the Martian surface as a function of season and latitude, and discuss the biological survival rates in the presence of Martian solar UV radiation. High T7/Uracil BED ratios indicate that even at high latitudes where the UV flux is significantly reduced, the radiation environment is still hostile for life due to the persisting UV-C component of the flux.     

The optical constants of gypsum particles as analog of Martian sulfates

Various indications seem to suggest that in the past the Martian climate allowed the presence of liquid water on the surface of the planet. It is therefore reasonable to think that bodies of standing water were once present in basins such as craters or depressions and that evaporite deposits of sulfates could have formed in these basins. The identification of such deposits, which might have survived in some regions of the planet, could confirm the present hypothesis about the ancient climate on Mars. Recent analyses of Mars spectra, obtained by ground-based observations, show bands consistent with sulfate features. If such data have to be interpreted with the aid of synthetic spectra, the knowledge of the complex refractive index of some sulfate is necessary. In this work we present the optical constants of submicron particles of gypsum (a typical hydrate–sulfate very common on Earth), derived by means of the dispersion theory from transmission spectra. We have performed the calculation of the optical constants in the wavelength range 2–70 μm, also in view of the wide spectral range covered by the Planetary Fourier Spectrometer (PFS) on board of the ESA space mission Mars Express. The data have been compared with optical constants obtained by other authors from reflectance measurements of particulate samples.     

Development of a gas chromatography compatible Sample Processing System (SPS) for the in-situ analysis of refractory organic matter in martian soil: preliminary results

In the frame of the 2009 Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission a new sample preparation system (SPS) compatible with gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) has been developed for the in situ analysis of complex organic molecules in the Martian soil. The goal is to detect, if they exist, some of the key compounds that play an important role in life on Earth including carboxylic acids, amino acids and nucleobases.     

Planetary protection and the search for life beneath the surface of Mars.

The search for traces of extinct and extant life on Mars will be extended to beneath the surface of the planet. Current data from Mars missions suggesting the presence of liquid water early in Mars' history and mathematical modeling of the fate of water on Mars imply that liquid water may exist deep beneath the surface of Mars. This leads to the hypothesis that life may exist deep beneath the Martian surface. One possible scenario to look for life on Mars involves a series of unmanned missions culminating with a manned mission drilling deep into the Martian subsurface (approximately 3Km), collecting samples, and conducting preliminary analyses to select samples for return to earth. This mission must address both forward and back contamination issues, and falls under planetary protection category V. Planetary protection issues to be addressed include provisions stating that the inevitable deposition of earth microbes by humans should be minimized and localized, and that earth microbes and organic material must not contaminate the Martian subsurface. This requires that the drilling equipment be sterilized prior to use. Further, the collection, containment and retrieval of the sample must be conducted such that the crew is protected and that any materials returning to earth are contained (i.e., physically and biologically isolated) and the chain of connection with Mars is broken.     

Biological space experiments for the simulation of Martian conditions: UV radiation and Martian soil analogues.

The survivability of resistant terrestrial microbes, bacterial spores of Bacillus subtilis, was investigated in the BIOPAN facility of the European Space Agency onboard of Russian Earth-orbiting FOTON satellites (BIOPAN I -III missions). The spores were exposed to different subsets of the extreme environmental parameters in space (vacuum, extraterrestrial solar UV, shielding by protecting materials like artificial meteorites). The results of the three space experiments confirmed the deleterious effects of extraterrestrial solar UV radiation which, in contrast to the UV radiation reaching the surface of the Earth, also contains the very energy-rich, short wavelength UVB and UVC radiation. Thin layers of clay, rock or meteorite material were shown to be only successful in UV-shielding, if they are in direct contact with the spores. On Mars the UV radiation climate is similar to that of the early Earth before the development of a protective ozone layer in the atmosphere by the appearance of the first aerobic photosynthetic bacteria. The interference of Martian soil components and the intense and nearly unfiltered Martian solar UV radiation with spores of B. subtilis will be tested with a new BIOPAN experiment, MARSTOX. Different types of Mars soil analogues will be used to determine on one hand their potential toxicity alone or in combination with solar UV (phototoxicity) and on the other hand their UV protection capability. Two sets of samples will be placed under different cut-off filters used to simulate the UV radiation climate of Mars and Earth. After exposure in space the survival of and mutation induction in the spores will be analyzed at the DLR, together with parallel samples from the corresponding ground control experiment performed in the laboratory. This experiment will provide new insights into the principal limits of life and its adaptation to environmental extremes on Earth or other planets which and will also have implications for the potential for the evolution and distribution of life.     

Phosphorus as a potential guide in the search for extinct life on Mars.

In contrast to the search for extant organisms, the quest for fossil remains of life on Mars need not be guided by the presence of water and organic compounds on the present surface. An appropriate tracer might be the element phosphorus which is a common constituent of living systems. Utilizing terrestrial analogues, it should preferentially exist in the form of sedimentary calcium phosphate (phosphorites), which would have readily resisted changing conditions on Mars. Moreover, higher ratios of P/Th in phosphorites in comparison to calcium phosphates from magmatic rocks give us the possibility to distinguish them from inorganically formed phosphorus deposits at or close to the Martian surface. Identification of anomalous phosphorus enrichments by remote sensing or in situ analysis could be promising approaches for selecting areas preferentially composed of rocks with remains of extinct life.     

Planetary Protection and the astrobiological exploration of Mars: Proactive steps in moving forward

Future efforts towards Mars exploration should include a discussion about the effects that the strict application of Planetary Protection policies is having on the astrobiological exploration of Mars, which is resulting in a continued delay in the search for Martian life. As proactive steps in the path forward, here we propose advances in three areas. First, we suggest that a redefinition of Planetary Protection and Special Regions is required for the case of Mars. Particularly, we propose a definition for special places on Mars that we can get to in the next 10–20?years with rovers and landers, where try to address questions regarding whether there is present-day near-surface life on Mars or not, and crucially doing so before the arrival of manned missions. We propose to call those special places “Astrobiology Priority Exploration” regions (APEX regions). Second, we stress the need for the development of robotic tools for the characterization of complex organic compounds as unequivocal signs of life, and particularly new generations of complex organic chemistry and biosignature detection instruments, including advances in DNA sequencing. And third, we advocate for a change from the present generation of SUV-sized landers and rovers to new robotic assets that are much easier to decontaminate such as microlanders: they would be very small with limited sensing capabilities, but there would be many of them available for launch and coordination from an orbiting platform. Implementing these changes will help to move forward with an exploration approach that is much less risky to the potential Mars biosphere, while also being much more scientifically rigorous about the exploration of the “life on Mars” question – a question that needs to be answered both for astrobiological discovery and for learning more definitive lessons on Planetary Protection.     

Electric discharge in the Martian atmosphere,Paschen curves and implications for future missions

Electric discharge between two electrically charged surfaces occurs at a well-defined, gas-dependent combination of atmospheric pressure and the distance between those two surfaces, as described by Paschen’s law. The understanding of when the discharge will occur in the conditions present on Mars is essential for designing space-flight hardware that will operate on the Martian surface as well as understanding electrical discharge processes occurring in the Martian atmosphere. Here, we present experimentally measured Paschen curves for a gas mixture representative of the Martian atmosphere and compare our results to breakdown voltages of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and helium as measured with our system and from the literature. We will discuss possible implications for instrument development as well as implications for processes in the Martian atmosphere. The DC voltage at which electric discharge occurred between two stainless steel spheres was measured at pressures from 10⁻² to 100 torr in all gases. We measured a minimum voltage for discharge in the Mars ambient atmosphere of 410 ± 10 V at 0.3 torr cm. As an application, the breakdown properties of space-qualified, electrical wires to be used in the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite on the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) were studied.     

美国2020火星车着陆区遴选进展及对2020中国火星任务着陆探测部分的一些思考

总结了近20年来火星探测的重要发现以及生命、气候和地质3个方面尚未解决的关键科学问题;介绍了美国国家航空航天局(NASA)2020火星探测任务的科学目标、科学载荷和着陆区选择的工程条件限制,并重点分析了经过3次着陆区选择研讨会,上百位行星科学家投票选取的排名前3的预选着陆区的地质情况。在此基础上,提出了对我国2020年火星任务的着陆探测部分的一些思考,并根据不同的任务目标(聚焦生命、气候和地质问题;支持载人火星探测的资源勘察;工程技术验证)提出了3个候选着陆区。     

South polar permanent CO2 ice cap presentation in the Global Mars Multiscale Model

The atmospheric influence caused by the Martian permanent south CO₂ ice cap is examined to improve the Global Mars Multiscale Model (GM3) to see if it can significantly improve the representation of south polar meteorology. However, the seasonal carbon dioxide ice in the polar regions is presented in the surface ice simulation by the Global Mars Multiscale Model but the model does not produce a permanent south CO₂ ice cap, and the physics code must modify to capture the realistic physical such as ice process detail; probably makes a bias in terms of total CO₂ ice and meteorological processes in the model aside from ice formation. The permanent south CO₂ ice cap in the model can significantly improve the representation of south polar meteorology for example in predicted surface temperatures, surface pressures, horizontal and zonal winds over the south cap and possible initiation of dust storms at south polar region during the southern summer period.     

Detection of regolith buried water stream channels on Mars with the help of synthetic aperture radar

A major theme in the study of Mars is the search for evidence that water was present in the past or is present today, either at or below the surface. Biological life is connected to water. Hence much research is focused on the detection of water stream channels, which in the past flowed on Mars. In these areas, the petrified remains of the former life on Mars may be found. These channels may be under the regolith layer; however, the radio wave penetrating ability allows for the detection of these channels under the regolith.     

Stable carbon isotope fractionation in the search for life on early Mars.

Isotopic measurements and, more specifically, ratios of 13C to 12C in organic relative to inorganic deposits, are useful in reconstructing past biological activity on Earth. Organic matter has a lower ratio of 13C to 12C due largely to the preferential fixation of 12C over the heavier isotope by the major carbon-fixation enzyme, ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase, although other factors (e.g., availability of source carbon, fixation by other carboxylating enzymes and diagenesis of organic material) also contribute to fractionation. Would carbon isotope discrepancies between inorganic and organic carbon indicate past biological activity on Mars? In order to answer this question, we analyse what is known about terrestrial biologic and abiologic carbon fixation and its preservation in the fossil record, and suggest what the isotope discrimination during possible biologic and abiologic carbon fixation on Mars might have been like. Primarily because isotopic signatures of abiotically fixed carbon overlap with those of biotic fixation, but also because heterotrophy does not significantly alter the isotopic signature of ingested carbon, fractionation alone would not be definitive evidence for life. However, a narrow range of fractionation, including no fractionation, would suggest biotic processes. Never-the-less, isotopic ratios in organic deposits on Mars would be extremely useful in analysing prebiotic, if not biotic, carbon transformations on Mars.     

YingHuo-1——Martian Space Environment Exploration Orbiter

This paper gives a brief introduction of YingHuo-1 (YH-1), a Chinese Martian Space Environment Exploration Orbiter. YH-1 is a micro-satellite developed by Chinese Aerospace Industry,and will be launched together with Russian spacecraft, Phobos-Grunt, to orbit Mars in September,2009. Four payloads are selected for the mission, plasma package, including of electron analyzer, ion energy and mass analyzer; sat-sat occultation receiver; flux-gate magnetometer; and optical monitor.YH-1 mission focus on the investigation of the characteristics and its evolution of the Martian space Environment, and identifying major plasma processes, which provide channels for Martian volatiles escaping.     

The search for nitrogen compounds on the surface of Mars

Nitrogen is an essential element for life. Specifically, “fixed nitrogen” (i.e., NH₃, NH₄⁺, NO_x, or N that is chemically bound to either inorganic or organic molecules and is releasable by hydrolysis to NH₃ or NH₄⁺) is the form of nitrogen useful to living organisms. To date no direct analysis of Martian soil nitrogen content, or content of fixed nitrogen compounds has been done. Consequently, the planet's total inventory of nitrogen is unknown. What is known is that the N₂ content of the present-day Martian atmosphere is 0.2 mbar. It has been hypothesized that early in Mars' history (3 to 4 billion years ago) the Martian atmosphere contained much more N₂ than it does today. The values of N₂ proposed for this early Martian atmosphere, however, are not well constrained and range from 3 to 300 mbar of N₂. If the early atmosphere of Mars did contain much more N₂ than it does today the question to be answered is, Where did it go? The two main processes that could have removed it rapidly from the atmosphere include: 1) nonthermal escape of N-atoms to space; and 2) burial within the regolith as nitrates and nitrites. Nitrate will be stable in the highly oxidized surface soil of Mars, and will tend to accumulate in the soil. Such accumulations are observed in certain desert environments on Earth. Some NH₄⁺---N may also be fixed and stabilized in the soil by inclusion as a structural cation in the crystal lattices of certain phyllosilicates replacing K. Analysis of the Martian soil for traces of NO₃⁻ and NH₄⁺ during future missions will supply important information regarding the nitrogen abundance on Mars, its past climate as well as its potential for the evolution of life.     

YingHuo-1——Martian Space Environment Exploration Orbiter

This paper gives a brief introduction of YingHuo-1 (YH-1), a Chinese Martian Space Environment Exploration Orbiter. YH-1 is a micro-satellite developed by Chinese Aerospace Industry,and will be launched together with Russian spacecraft, Phobos-Grunt, to orbit Mars in September,2009. Four payloads are selected for the mission, plasma package, including of electron analyzer, ion energy and mass analyzer; sat-sat occultation receiver; flux-gate magnetometer; and optical monitor.YH-1 mission focus on the investigation of the characteristics and its evolution of the Martian space Environment, and identifying major plasma processes, which provide channels for Martian volatiles escaping.      

A space radiation shielding model of the Martian radiation environment experiment (MARIE)

The 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft was launched towards Mars on April 7, 2001. Onboard the spacecraft is the Martian radiation environment experiment (MARIE), which is designed to measure the background radiation environment due to galactic cosmic rays (GCR) and solar protons in the 20–500 MeV/n energy range. We present an approach for developing a space radiation-shielding model of the spacecraft that includes the MARIE instrument in the current mapping phase orientation. A discussion is presented describing the development and methodology used to construct the shielding model. For a given GCR model environment, using the current MARIE shielding model and the high-energy particle transport codes, dose rate values are compared with MARIE measurements during the early mapping phase in Mars orbit. The results show good agreement between the model calculations and the MARIE measurements as presented for the March 2002 dataset.     

利用CRISM数据探测火星表面含水矿物及其演化

火星表层矿物识别是了解火星大气环境变化、表层地质环境的关键因素。通过确定火星表层矿物,分析矿物特性,了解火星的环境状态、地质演化以及火星的未来适居性。火星勘测轨道器(Mars reconnaissance orbiter,MRO)上搭载的紧凑型侦察成像仪(compact reconnaissance imaging spectrometer for Mars,CRISM)是针对火星矿物探测的最新的高光谱成像仪,以很高的光谱分辨率覆盖可见光至近红外波段,为火星表面的矿物分布及区域填图提供了可能。通过光谱匹配及计算CRISM光谱参数综合产品,分析了火星Jezero以及Holden撞击坑内的矿物成分及其演化。Jezero与Holden因其复杂而关键的地质特征,被列为火星2020登陆任务的备选登陆点。对这两个地点的矿物探测与填图分析不仅可进一步分析火星典型地质特征以及演化,而且还可以为未来的火星登陆点分析提供现实意义。在研究区域已检测到与水成蚀变相关的含水硅酸盐类以及碳酸盐类与含水硫酸盐类。水合矿物增加了这些区域曾经含水的可能性,且矿物的多样性表明研究区地质环境经历了不同的变化,其中Jezero地区不同于火星的绝大多数地区从中性环境到酸性环境的演化,有可能经历了从中性环境到碱性环境的演化。