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Pierce MP, Brazelton WJ. Genetic Biosignatures of Deep-Subsurface Organisms Preserved in Carbonates Over a 100,000 Year Timescale at a Surface-Accessible Mars Analog Site in Southeastern Utah. ASTROBIOLOGY 2023; 23:979-990. [PMID: 37594859 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2022.0139] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/20/2023]
Abstract
In recent years, strong evidence has emerged indicating the potential habitability of the subsurface of Mars. Occasional discharge events that bring subsurface fluids to the surface may carry with them the biological traces of subsurface organisms. Similar events are known to take place on Earth and are frequently associated with long-term mineralogical preservation of organic material, including DNA. Taking advantage of this process may allow for the development of life-detection strategies targeting biosignatures from the more habitable subsurface environment without the need for direct subsurface exploration. To test the potential for this approach to life-detection, we adapted a protocol to extract microbial DNA preserved in carbonate rocks and tested its efficacy in detecting subsurface organisms at a Mars analog site in southeastern Utah, USA, using samples from ancient and modern carbonate deposits associated with natural and artificial springs. Our results indicated that DNA from deep-subsurface organisms preserved in carbonate deposits can remain recoverable for up to 100,000 years, supporting life-detection strategies based on the detection of deep-subsurface biosignatures in surface-exposed rocks on Mars.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mac P Pierce
- State Key Laboratory of Emerging Infectious Diseases, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
| | - William J Brazelton
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
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2
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Wynne JJ, Titus TN, Agha‐Mohammadi A, Azua‐Bustos A, Boston PJ, de León P, Demirel‐Floyd C, De Waele J, Jones H, Malaska MJ, Miller AZ, Sapers HM, Sauro F, Sonderegger DL, Uckert K, Wong UY, Alexander EC, Chiao L, Cushing GE, DeDecker J, Fairén AG, Frumkin A, Harris GL, Kearney ML, Kerber L, Léveillé RJ, Manyapu K, Massironi M, Mylroie JE, Onac BP, Parazynski SE, Phillips‐Lander CM, Prettyman TH, Schulze‐Makuch D, Wagner RV, Whittaker WL, Williams KE. Fundamental Science and Engineering Questions in Planetary Cave Exploration. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH. PLANETS 2022; 127:e2022JE007194. [PMID: 36582809 PMCID: PMC9787064 DOI: 10.1029/2022je007194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2022] [Revised: 04/21/2022] [Accepted: 04/22/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Nearly half a century ago, two papers postulated the likelihood of lunar lava tube caves using mathematical models. Today, armed with an array of orbiting and fly-by satellites and survey instrumentation, we have now acquired cave data across our solar system-including the identification of potential cave entrances on the Moon, Mars, and at least nine other planetary bodies. These discoveries gave rise to the study of planetary caves. To help advance this field, we leveraged the expertise of an interdisciplinary group to identify a strategy to explore caves beyond Earth. Focusing primarily on astrobiology, the cave environment, geology, robotics, instrumentation, and human exploration, our goal was to produce a framework to guide this subdiscipline through at least the next decade. To do this, we first assembled a list of 198 science and engineering questions. Then, through a series of social surveys, 114 scientists and engineers winnowed down the list to the top 53 highest priority questions. This exercise resulted in identifying emerging and crucial research areas that require robust development to ultimately support a robotic mission to a planetary cave-principally the Moon and/or Mars. With the necessary financial investment and institutional support, the research and technological development required to achieve these necessary advancements over the next decade are attainable. Subsequently, we will be positioned to robotically examine lunar caves and search for evidence of life within Martian caves; in turn, this will set the stage for human exploration and potential habitation of both the lunar and Martian subsurface.
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Affiliation(s)
- J. Judson Wynne
- Department of Biological Sciences and Center for Adaptable Western LandscapesNorthern Arizona UniversityFlagstaffAZUSA
| | | | | | - Armando Azua‐Bustos
- Centro de AstrobiologíaCSIC‐INTAUnidad María de MaeztuInstituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial Ctra de Torrejón a AjalvirMadridSpain
- Instituto de Ciencias BiomédicasFacultad de Ciencias de la SaludUniversidad Autónoma de ChileSantiagoChile
| | | | - Pablo de León
- Human Spaceflight LaboratoryDepartment of Space StudiesUniversity of North DakotaGrand ForksNDUSA
| | | | - Jo De Waele
- Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental SciencesUniversity of BolognaBolognaItaly
| | - Heather Jones
- Robotics InstituteCarnegie Mellon UniversityPittsburghPAUSA
| | - Michael J. Malaska
- Jet Propulsion LaboratoryCalifornia Institute of TechnologyPasadenaCAUSA
| | - Ana Z. Miller
- Laboratório HERCULESUniversity of ÉvoraÉvoraPortugal
- Instituto de Recursos Naturales y AgrobiologíaConsejo Superior de Investigaciones CientíficasSevilleSpain
| | - Haley M. Sapers
- Department of Earth and Space Science and EngineeringYork UniversityTorontoONCanada
| | - Francesco Sauro
- Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental SciencesUniversity of BolognaBolognaItaly
| | - Derek L. Sonderegger
- Department of Mathematics and StatisticsNorthern Arizona UniversityFlagstaffAZUSA
| | - Kyle Uckert
- Jet Propulsion LaboratoryCalifornia Institute of TechnologyPasadenaCAUSA
| | | | - E. Calvin Alexander
- Earth and Environmental Sciences DepartmentUniversity of MinnesotaMinneapolisMNUSA
| | - Leroy Chiao
- Department of Mechanical EngineeringRice UniversityHoustonTXUSA
| | - Glen E. Cushing
- U.S. Geological SurveyAstrogeology Science CenterFlagstaffAZUSA
| | - John DeDecker
- Center for Mineral Resources ScienceColorado School of MinesGoldenCOUSA
| | - Alberto G. Fairén
- Centro de AstrobiologíaCSIC‐INTAUnidad María de MaeztuInstituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial Ctra de Torrejón a AjalvirMadridSpain
- Department of AstronomyCornell UniversityIthacaNYUSA
| | - Amos Frumkin
- Institute of Earth SciencesThe Hebrew UniversityJerusalemIsrael
| | - Gary L. Harris
- Human Spaceflight LaboratoryDepartment of Space StudiesUniversity of North DakotaGrand ForksNDUSA
| | - Michelle L. Kearney
- Department of Astronomy and Planetary SciencesNorthern Arizona UniversityFlagstaffAZUSA
| | - Laura Kerber
- Jet Propulsion LaboratoryCalifornia Institute of TechnologyPasadenaCAUSA
| | - Richard J. Léveillé
- Department of Earth and Planetary SciencesMcGill UniversityMontrealQCCanada
- Geosciences DepartmentJohn Abbott CollegeSte‐Anne‐de‐BellevueQCCanada
| | | | - Matteo Massironi
- Dipartimento di GeoscienzeUniversità degli Studi di PadovaPadovaItaly
| | - John E. Mylroie
- Department of GeosciencesMississippi State UniversityStarkvilleMSUSA
| | - Bogdan P. Onac
- School of GeosciencesUniversity of South FloridaTampaFLUSA
- Emil G. Racoviță InstituteBabeș‐Bolyai UniversityCluj‐NapocaRomania
| | | | | | | | - Dirk Schulze‐Makuch
- Astrobiology GroupCenter of Astronomy and AstrophysicsTechnische Universität BerlinBerlinGermany
- Section GeomicrobiologyGFZ German Research Centre for GeosciencesPotsdamGermany
- Department of Experimental LimnologyLeibniz‐Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB)StechlinGermany
| | - Robert V. Wagner
- School of Earth and Space ExplorationArizona State UniversityTempeAZUSA
| | - William L. Whittaker
- Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental SciencesUniversity of BolognaBolognaItaly
| | - Kaj E. Williams
- U.S. Geological SurveyAstrogeology Science CenterFlagstaffAZUSA
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3
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Naz N, Liu D, Harandi BF, Kounaves SP. Microbial Growth in Martian Soil Simulants Under Terrestrial Conditions: Guiding the Search for Life on Mars. ASTROBIOLOGY 2022; 22:1210-1221. [PMID: 36000998 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2022.0022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The search for life elsewhere in the Universe goes together with the search for liquid water. Life as we know it requires water; however, it is possible for microbial life to exist under hyperarid conditions with a minimal amount of water. We report on the ability of two typical terrestrial bacteria (Escherichia coli B and Eucapsis sp) and two extremophiles (Gloeocapsa-20201027-1 sp and Planococcus halocryophilus) to grow and survive in three martian soil (regolith) simulants (Mohave Mars Simulant-1 [MMS-1] F, Mars Global Simulant-1 [MGS-1], and JSC Mars-1A [JSC]). Survival and growth were assessed over a 21-day period under terrestrial conditions and with water:soil (vol:wt) ratios that varied from 0.25:1 to 5:1. We found that Eucapsis and Gloeocapsa sp grew best in the simulants MMS and JSC, respectively, while P. halocryophilus growth rates were better in the JSC simulant. As expected, E. coli did not show significant growth. Our results indicate that these martian simulants and thus martian regolith, with minimal or no added nutrients or water, can support the growth of extremophiles such as P. halocryphilus and Gloeocapsa. Similar extremophiles on early Mars may have survived to the present in near-surface ecological niches analogous to those where these organisms exist on Earth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Neveda Naz
- Department of Chemistry, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Dongyu Liu
- Department of Chemistry, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Bijan F Harandi
- Department of Chemistry, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Samuel P Kounaves
- Department of Chemistry, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts, USA
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Complex Brines and Their Implications for Habitability. Life (Basel) 2021; 11:life11080847. [PMID: 34440591 PMCID: PMC8398403 DOI: 10.3390/life11080847] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2021] [Revised: 08/09/2021] [Accepted: 08/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
There is evidence that life on Earth originated in cold saline waters around scorching hydrothermal vents, and that similar conditions might exist or have existed on Mars, Europa, Ganymede, Enceladus, and other worlds. Could potentially habitable complex brines with extremely low freezing temperatures exist in the shallow subsurface of these frigid worlds? Earth, Mars, and carbonaceous chondrites have similar bulk elemental abundances, but while the Earth is depleted in the most volatile elements, the Icy Worlds of the outer solar system are expected to be rich in them. The cooling of ionic solutions containing substances that likely exist in the Icy Worlds could form complex brines with the lowest eutectic temperature possible for the compounds available in them. Indeed, here, we show observational and theoretical evidence that even elements present in trace amounts in nature are concentrated by freeze–thaw cycles, and therefore contribute significantly to the formation of brine reservoirs that remain liquid throughout the year in some of the coldest places on Earth. This is interesting because the eutectic temperature of water–ammonia solutions can be as low as ~160 K, and significant fractions of the mass of the Icy Worlds are estimated to be water substance and ammonia. Thus, briny solutions with eutectic temperature of at least ~160 K could have formed where, historically, temperature have oscillated above and below ~160 K. We conclude that complex brines must exist in the shallow subsurface of Mars and the Icy Worlds, and that liquid saline water should be present where ice has existed, the temperature is above ~160 K, and evaporation and sublimation have been inhibited.
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Heinz J, Waajen AC, Airo A, Alibrandi A, Schirmack J, Schulze-Makuch D. Bacterial Growth in Chloride and Perchlorate Brines: Halotolerances and Salt Stress Responses of Planococcus halocryophilus. ASTROBIOLOGY 2019; 19:1377-1387. [PMID: 31386567 PMCID: PMC6818489 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2019.2069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2019] [Accepted: 06/26/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Extraterrestrial environments encompass physicochemical conditions and habitats that are unknown on Earth, such as perchlorate-rich brines that can be at least temporarily stable on the martian surface. To better understand the potential for life in these cold briny environments, we determined the maximum salt concentrations suitable for growth (MSCg) of six different chloride and perchlorate salts at 25°C and 4°C for the extremotolerant cold- and salt-adapted bacterial strain Planococcus halocryophilus. Growth was measured through colony-forming unit (CFU) counts, while cellular and colonial phenotypic stress responses were observed through visible light, fluorescence, and scanning electron microscopy. Our data show the following: (1) The tolerance to high salt concentrations can be increased through a stepwise inoculation toward higher concentrations. (2) Ion-specific factors are more relevant for the growth limitation of P. halocryophilus in saline solutions than single physicochemical parameters like ionic strength or water activity. (3) P. halocryophilus shows the highest microbial sodium perchlorate tolerance described so far. However, (4) MSCg values are higher for all chlorides compared to perchlorates. (5) The MSCg for calcium chloride was increased by lowering the temperature from 25°C to 4°C, while sodium- and magnesium-containing salts can be tolerated at 25°C to higher concentrations than at 4°C. (6) Depending on salt type and concentration, P. halocryophilus cells show distinct phenotypic stress responses such as novel types of colony morphology on agar plates and biofilm-like cell clustering, encrustation, and development of intercellular nanofilaments. This study, taken in context with previous work on the survival of extremophiles in Mars-like environments, suggests that high-concentrated perchlorate brines on Mars might not be habitable to any present organism on Earth, but extremophilic microorganisms might be able to evolve thriving in such environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob Heinz
- Center of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Astrobiology Research Group, Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Annemiek C. Waajen
- Center of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Astrobiology Research Group, Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- UK Centre for Astrobiology, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Alessandro Airo
- Center of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Astrobiology Research Group, Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Armando Alibrandi
- Center of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Astrobiology Research Group, Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Janosch Schirmack
- Center of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Astrobiology Research Group, Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Dirk Schulze-Makuch
- Center of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Astrobiology Research Group, Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- School of the Environment, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
- GFZ German Center for Geoscience, Section Geomicrobiology, Potsdam, Germany
- Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Department of Experimental Limnology, Stechlin, Germany
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6
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Heinz J, Schirmack J, Airo A, Kounaves SP, Schulze-Makuch D. Enhanced Microbial Survivability in Subzero Brines. ASTROBIOLOGY 2018; 18:1171-1180. [PMID: 29664686 PMCID: PMC6150940 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2017.1805] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2017] [Accepted: 03/08/2018] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
It is well known that dissolved salts can significantly lower the freezing point of water and thus extend habitability to subzero conditions. However, most investigations thus far have focused on sodium chloride as a solute. In this study, we report on the survivability of the bacterial strain Planococcus halocryophilus in sodium, magnesium, and calcium chloride or perchlorate solutions at temperatures ranging from +25°C to -30°C. In addition, we determined the survival rates of P. halocryophilus when subjected to multiple freeze/thaw cycles. We found that cells suspended in chloride-containing samples have markedly increased survival rates compared with those in perchlorate-containing samples. In both cases, the survival rates increase with lower temperatures; however, this effect is more pronounced in chloride-containing samples. Furthermore, we found that higher salt concentrations increase survival rates when cells are subjected to freeze/thaw cycles. Our findings have important implications not only for the habitability of cold environments on Earth but also for extraterrestrial environments such as that of Mars, where cold brines might exist in the subsurface and perhaps even appear temporarily at the surface such as at recurring slope lineae.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob Heinz
- Center of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Janosch Schirmack
- Center of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Alessandro Airo
- Center of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Samuel P. Kounaves
- Department of Chemistry, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts
- Department of Earth Science and Engineering, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Dirk Schulze-Makuch
- Center of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Technical University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- School of the Environment, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington
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Thompson SP, Kennedy H, Day SJ, Baker AR, Butler BM, Safi E, Kelly J, Male A, Potter J, Cobb T, Murray CA, Tang CC, Evans A, Mercado R. A slow-cooling-rate in situ cell for long-duration studies of mineral precipitation in cold aqueous environments on Earth and other planetary bodies. J Appl Crystallogr 2018; 51:1197-1210. [PMID: 30147638 PMCID: PMC6100201 DOI: 10.1107/s1600576718008816] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2018] [Accepted: 06/15/2018] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Liquid oceans and ice caps, along with ice crusts, have long been considered defining features of the Earth, but space missions and observations have shown that they are in fact common features among many of the solar system's outer planets and their satellites. Interactions with rock-forming materials have produced saline oceans not dissimilar in many respects to those on Earth, where mineral precipitation within frozen seawater plays a significant role in both determining global properties and regulating the environment in which a complex ecosystem of extremophiles exists. Since water is considered an essential ingredient for life, the presence of oceans and ice on other solar system bodies is of great astrobiological interest. However, the details surrounding mineral precipitation in freezing environments are still poorly constrained, owing to the difficulties of sampling and ex situ preservation for laboratory analysis, meaning that predictive models have limited empirical underpinnings. To address this, the design and performance characterization of a transmission-geometry sample cell for use in long-duration synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction studies of in situ mineral precipitation from aqueous ice-brine systems are presented. The cell is capable of very slow cooling rates (e.g. 0.3°C per day or less), and its performance is demonstrated with the results from a year-long study of the precipitation of the hydrated magnesium sulfate phase meridianiite (MgSO4·11H2O) from the MgSO4-H2O system. Evidence from the Mars Rover mission suggests that this hydrated phase is widespread on the present-day surface of Mars. However, as well as the predicted hexagonal ice and meridianiite phases, an additional hydrated sulfate phase and a disordered phase are observed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen P. Thompson
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0DE, UK
| | - Hilary Kennedy
- School of Ocean Sciences, Bangor University, Menai Bridge, Anglesey LL59 5AB, UK
| | - Sarah J. Day
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0DE, UK
| | - Annabelle R. Baker
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0DE, UK
| | - Benjamin M. Butler
- Environmental and Biochemical Sciences, The James Hutton Institute, Craigiebuckler, Aberdeen AB15 8QH, UK
| | - Emmal Safi
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0DE, UK
- Astrophysics Group, Lennard-Jones Laboratories, Keele University, Keele, Staffordshire ST5 5BG, UK
| | - Jon Kelly
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0DE, UK
| | - Andrew Male
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0DE, UK
| | - Jonathan Potter
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0DE, UK
| | - Tom Cobb
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0DE, UK
| | - Claire A. Murray
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0DE, UK
| | - Chiu C. Tang
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0DE, UK
| | - Aneurin Evans
- Astrophysics Group, Lennard-Jones Laboratories, Keele University, Keele, Staffordshire ST5 5BG, UK
| | - Ronaldo Mercado
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0DE, UK
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Huang 黄俊 J, Salvatore MR, Edwards CS, Harris RL, Christensen PR. A Complex Fluviolacustrine Environment on Early Mars and Its Astrobiological Potentials. ASTROBIOLOGY 2018; 18:1081-1091. [PMID: 30074400 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2017.1757] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Chloride-bearing deposits and phyllosilicates-bearing units are widely distributed in the southern highlands of Mars, but these phases are rarely found together in fluviolacustrine environments. The study of the coexistence of these minerals can provide important insights into geochemistry, water activity, and ultimately the climate and habitability of early Mars. Here we use high-resolution compositional and morphological orbiter data to identify and characterize the context of diverse minerals in a Noachian fluviolacustrine environment west of Knobel crater (6.7°S, 226.8°W). The chlorides in this region are likely formed through the evaporation of brines in a closed topographic basin. The formation age of chlorides is older than 3.7 Ga, based on stratigraphic relationships identified and previously obtained crater retention ages. The timing of the alteration of basaltic materials to iron-magnesium smectites in relation to the chloride formation in this location is enigmatic and is unable to be resolved with currently available remote sensing data. Importantly, we find that this close relationship between these key minerals revealed by the currently available data details a complex and intimate history of aqueous activity in the region. Of critical importance are the evaporitic deposits as analogous terrestrial deposits have been shown to preserve ancient biosignatures and possibly even sustain microbial communities for hundreds of millions of years. These salts could have protected organic matter from ultraviolet radiation, or even allow modern habitable microenvironments in the shallow subsurface through periodic deliquescence. The high astrobiology potential of this site makes it a good candidate for future landed and sample return missions (e.g., the Chinese 2020 Mars mission).
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun Huang 黄俊
- 1 Planetary Science Institute, State Key Laboratory of Geological Processes and Mineral Resources, School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences , Wuhan, China
- 2 Lunar and Planetary Science Laboratory, Macau University of Science and Technology-Partner Laboratory of Key Laboratory of Lunar and Deep Space Exploration , Chinese Academy of Sciences, Macau, China
- 5 School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University , Tempe, Arizona
| | - Mark R Salvatore
- 3 Department of Physics and Astronomy, Northern Arizona University , Flagstaff, Arizona
| | - Christopher S Edwards
- 3 Department of Physics and Astronomy, Northern Arizona University , Flagstaff, Arizona
| | - Rachel L Harris
- 4 Department of Geosciences, Princeton University , Princeton, New Jersey
| | - Philip R Christensen
- 5 School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University , Tempe, Arizona
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Rummel JD, Beaty DW, Jones MA, Bakermans C, Barlow NG, Boston PJ, Chevrier VF, Clark BC, de Vera JPP, Gough RV, Hallsworth JE, Head JW, Hipkin VJ, Kieft TL, McEwen AS, Mellon MT, Mikucki JA, Nicholson WL, Omelon CR, Peterson R, Roden EE, Sherwood Lollar B, Tanaka KL, Viola D, Wray JJ. A new analysis of Mars "Special Regions": findings of the second MEPAG Special Regions Science Analysis Group (SR-SAG2). ASTROBIOLOGY 2014; 14:887-968. [PMID: 25401393 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2014.1227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 148] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
A committee of the Mars Exploration Program Analysis Group (MEPAG) has reviewed and updated the description of Special Regions on Mars as places where terrestrial organisms might replicate (per the COSPAR Planetary Protection Policy). This review and update was conducted by an international team (SR-SAG2) drawn from both the biological science and Mars exploration communities, focused on understanding when and where Special Regions could occur. The study applied recently available data about martian environments and about terrestrial organisms, building on a previous analysis of Mars Special Regions (2006) undertaken by a similar team. Since then, a new body of highly relevant information has been generated from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (launched in 2005) and Phoenix (2007) and data from Mars Express and the twin Mars Exploration Rovers (all 2003). Results have also been gleaned from the Mars Science Laboratory (launched in 2011). In addition to Mars data, there is a considerable body of new data regarding the known environmental limits to life on Earth-including the potential for terrestrial microbial life to survive and replicate under martian environmental conditions. The SR-SAG2 analysis has included an examination of new Mars models relevant to natural environmental variation in water activity and temperature; a review and reconsideration of the current parameters used to define Special Regions; and updated maps and descriptions of the martian environments recommended for treatment as "Uncertain" or "Special" as natural features or those potentially formed by the influence of future landed spacecraft. Significant changes in our knowledge of the capabilities of terrestrial organisms and the existence of possibly habitable martian environments have led to a new appreciation of where Mars Special Regions may be identified and protected. The SR-SAG also considered the impact of Special Regions on potential future human missions to Mars, both as locations of potential resources and as places that should not be inadvertently contaminated by human activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- John D Rummel
- 1 Department of Biology, East Carolina University , Greenville, North Carolina, USA
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10
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Dickson JL, Head JW, Levy JS, Marchant DR. Don Juan Pond, Antarctica: near-surface CaCl(2)-brine feeding Earth's most saline lake and implications for Mars. Sci Rep 2013; 3:1166. [PMID: 23378901 PMCID: PMC3559074 DOI: 10.1038/srep01166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2012] [Accepted: 12/19/2012] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The discovery on Mars of recurring slope lineae (RSL), thought to represent seasonal brines, has sparked interest in analogous environments on Earth. We report on new studies of Don Juan Pond (DJP), which exists at the upper limit of ephemeral water in the McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDV) of Antarctica, and is adjacent to several steep-sloped water tracks, the closest analog for RSL. The source of DJP has been interpreted to be deep groundwater. We present time-lapse data and meteorological measurements that confirm deliquescence within the DJP watershed and show that this, together with small amounts of meltwater, are capable of generating brines that control summertime water levels. Groundwater input was not observed. In addition to providing an analog for RSL formation, CaCl2 brines and chloride deposits in basins may provide clues to the origin of ancient chloride deposits on Mars dating from the transition period from “warm/wet” to “cold/dry” climates.
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Affiliation(s)
- James L Dickson
- Department of Geological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island 02912, USA.
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11
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Clifford SM, Lasue J, Heggy E, Boisson J, McGovern P, Max MD. Depth of the Martian cryosphere: Revised estimates and implications for the existence and detection of subpermafrost groundwater. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2010. [DOI: 10.1029/2009je003462] [Citation(s) in RCA: 167] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Rao MN, Nyquist LE, Wentworth SJ, Sutton SR, Garrison DH. The nature of Martian fluids based on mobile element studies in salt-assemblages from Martian meteorites. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2008. [DOI: 10.1029/2007je002958] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Rochette P, Gattacceca J, Chevrier V, Mathé PE, Menvielle M. Magnetism, iron minerals, and life on Mars. ASTROBIOLOGY 2006; 6:423-36. [PMID: 16805698 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2006.6.423] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
A short critical review is provided on two questions linking magnetism and possible early life on Mars: (1) Did Mars have an Earth-like internal magnetic field, and, if so, during which period and was it a requisite for life? (2) Is there a connection between iron minerals in the martian regolith and life? We also discuss the possible astrobiological implications of magnetic measurements at the surface of Mars using two proposed instruments. A magnetic remanence device based on magnetic field measurements can be used to identify Noachian age rocks and lightning impacts. A contact magnetic susceptibility probe can be used to investigate weathering rinds on martian rocks and identify meteorites among the small regolith rocks. Both materials are considered possible specific niches for microorganisms and, thus, potential astrobiological targets. Experimental results on analogues are presented to support the suitability of such in situ measurements.
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Affiliation(s)
- P Rochette
- CEREGE, CNRS/Universitá d'Aix Marseille 3, Aix en Provence, France.
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Onstott TC, McGown D, Kessler J, Lollar BS, Lehmann KK, Clifford SM. Martian CH(4): sources, flux, and detection. ASTROBIOLOGY 2006; 6:377-95. [PMID: 16689653 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2006.6.377] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
Recent observations have detected trace amounts of CH(4) heterogeneously distributed in the martian atmosphere, which indicated a subsurface CH(4) flux of ~2 x 10(5) to 2 x 10(9) cm(2) s(1). Four different origins for this CH(4) were considered: (1) volcanogenic; (2) sublimation of hydrate- rich ice; (3) diffusive transport through hydrate-saturated cryosphere; and (4) microbial CH(4) generation above the cryosphere. A diffusive flux model of the martian crust for He, H(2), and CH(4) was developed based upon measurements of deep fracture water samples from South Africa. This model distinguishes between abiogenic and microbial CH(4) sources based upon their isotopic composition, and couples microbial CH(4) production to H(2) generation by H(2)O radiolysis. For a He flux of approximately 10(5) cm(2) s(1) this model yields an abiogenic CH(4) flux and a microbial CH(4) flux of approximately 10(6) and approximately 10(9) cm(2) s(1), respectively. This flux will only reach the martian surface if CH(4) hydrate is saturated in the cryosphere; otherwise it will be captured within the cryosphere. The sublimation of a hydrate-rich cryosphere could generate the observed CH(4) flux, whereas microbial CH(4) production in a hypersaline environment above the hydrate stability zone only seems capable of supplying approximately 10(5) cm(2) s(1) of CH(4). The model predicts that He/H(2)/CH(4)/C(2)H(6) abundances and the C and H isotopic values of CH(4) and the C isotopic composition of C(2)H(6) could reveal the different sources. Cavity ring-down spectrometers represent the instrument type that would be most capable of performing the C and H measurements of CH(4) on near future rover missions and pinpointing the cause and source of the CH(4) emissions.
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Affiliation(s)
- T C Onstott
- Department of Geosciences, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA.
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Knauth LP, Burt DM, Wohletz KH. Impact origin of sediments at the Opportunity landing site on Mars. Nature 2005; 438:1123-8. [PMID: 16372001 DOI: 10.1038/nature04383] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2005] [Accepted: 10/26/2005] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity discovered sediments with layered structures thought to be unique to aqueous deposition and with minerals attributed to evaporation of an acidic salty sea. Remarkable iron-rich spherules were ascribed to later groundwater alteration, and the inferred abundance of water reinforced optimism that Mars was once habitable. The layered structures, however, are not unique to water deposition, and the scenario encounters difficulties in accounting for highly soluble salts admixed with less soluble salts, the lack of clay minerals from acid-rock reactions, high sphericity and near-uniform sizes of the spherules and the absence of a basin boundary. Here we present a simple alternative explanation involving deposition from a ground-hugging turbulent flow of rock fragments, salts, sulphides, brines and ice produced by meteorite impact. Subsequent weathering by intergranular water films can account for all of the features observed without invoking shallow seas, lakes or near-surface aquifers. Layered sequences observed elsewhere on heavily cratered Mars and attributed to wind, water or volcanism may well have formed similarly. If so, the search for past life on Mars should be reassessed accordingly.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Paul Knauth
- Department of Geological Sciences, Arizona State University, Box 871404, Tempe, Arizona 85287-1404, USA.
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Richardson MI, Mischna MA. Long-term evolution of transient liquid water on Mars. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2005. [DOI: 10.1029/2004je002367] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Mark I. Richardson
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences; California Institute of Technology; Pasadena California USA
| | - Michael A. Mischna
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory; California Institute of Technology; Pasadena California USA
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Rao MN, Sutton SR, McKay DS, Dreibus G. Clues to Martian brines based on halogens in salts from nakhlites and MER samples. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2005. [DOI: 10.1029/2005je002470] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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