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| Titel |
Raman and cathodoluminescence imagery: complementary tools for Martian Geology and the search Early Life on Mars. |
| VerfasserIn |
Nicolas Bost, Frances Westall, Claire Ramboz, Frédéric Foucher, Damien Do Couto |
| Konferenz |
EGU General Assembly 2011
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| Medientyp |
Artikel
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| Sprache |
Englisch
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| Digitales Dokument |
PDF |
| Erschienen |
In: GRA - Volume 13 (2011) |
| Datensatznummer |
250056949
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| Zusammenfassung |
| In the new double rover scenario for the 2018 NASA-ESA mission to Mars, the science
objectives of the European rover, ExoMars, are to search for traces of past or present life and
to document the water/geochemical environment as a function of depth in the shallow
subsurface.
A collection of Mars analogue rocks is being prepared by the Observatoire de l’Univers en
région Centre (OSUC) in Orléans to help calibrate the future flight instruments for the
ExoMars in situ mission. The rock library is being coupled to a database with information
about the textural, compositional and geotechnical properties of the rocks. We have
characterised a preliminary range of Mars analogue materials using standard laboratory
techniques, in particular with a Raman spectrometer. The Raman spectrometer (WITec
Alpha500 RA) of the CBM, appears to be a key instrument for analyses. This system allows
large and fine scale compositional mapping (from a tens of micrometers to up than 10 cm)
with a submicrometric resolution. This necessary information can be used to fully
characterise the composition of the samples, just as well the mineralogy and any eventual
fossil microbial remains.
Cathodoluminescence (CL) is not in the ExoMars instrument payload but this instrument is a
useful compliment to the Raman spectrometer for search for early life on Mars.
This instrument permits detection of trace contents of elements, such as Mg, that
can potentially reveal fossil bacterial activity in sedimentary rock. Mg has been
detected zoned carbonate globulesin basalts from Svalbard that are regarded as
analogues of the martian meteorite ALH84001 [1]. This instrument can be miniaturized
for in situ space missions and to this purpose we have developed an electron gun
[2].
[1] Treiman A.H. et al. (2002) EPSL, 204, 323-332.
[2] Thomas R. et al. (2009). Cathodoluminescence and its Application in the Planetary
Sciences, 111-126. |
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