Elizabeth C. Sklute uses a Bruker ALPHA Fourier Transform infrared spectrometer to study the mineral products created by the bioreduction of iron (hydro) oxides by microbes. Credit: EC Sklute, PSI.
The results of multiple and complementary laboratory analyzes of minerals found in samples from Antarctic material could give scientists a better understanding of Mars’ surface and subterranean environment and indicate locations of potentially habitable subterranean sites, says a new article by the research scientist of the Planetary Science Institute. Elizabeth C. Sklute.
Jill Mikucki of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, collected samples of intermittent brine discharge at Blood Falls, at the end of the Taylor Glacier in Antarctica, for two field seasons. Brine comes out of a body of groundwater that has been isolated for possibly thousands of years. The flow of brine deposits material that [is the] Superficial manifestation of a subsurface environment that hosts a thriving community of microbial life. Initially the brine is clear, but the deposits redden over time on the surface, earning its name in Blood Falls. These surface samples were tested in the Sklute laboratory by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, Raman, visible in the near infrared, and Mössbauer spectroscopy. The samples were further characterized by microsound and inductive coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy for chemistry, and X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy for mineralogy, crystallography, and chemistry.
“We took dry samples and analyzed them by illuminating them with light of different wavelengths. Each wavelength of light causes the bonds and atoms of a sample to react in a different way. Using- all together, it allows us to find out what’s there, ”said Sklute, lead author of“ A Multi-Technique Analysis of Surface Materials From Blood Falls, Antarctica ”that appears in Frontiers in astronomy and space science.
“We take each of these little pieces of information and stick them together to form a whole picture because one technique can be very good at telling you if there are certain things and another technique can be completely lost, simply because the bonds or atoms they don’t. Don’t react to those energies, “Sklute said. “These results show the strengths and weaknesses of different analytical methods and underline the need for multiple complementary techniques to report complicated mineralogy in this locality.
“Combining these techniques, we determined the detailed mineralogical set of this analogous site on Mars and learned that the deposit is mostly carbonated and that the red color of Bloody Falls comes from the oxidation of dissolved ferrous ions (Fe2 +) as are exposed to the air, probably in combination with other ions. “They contain iron and a lot of other elements, such as chlorine and sodium. Amorphous materials have been found to be ubiquitous in Mars’ Gale crater by the Curiosity rover,” Sklute said. “So far, we have not been able to determine what the amorphous material on Mars is made of. Finding what may be similar material in a natural environment on Earth is really exciting.
“We’re not saying it’s a biosignature because it’s not produced by microbes, but by the chemistry where microbes live. However, it gives us a roadmap for a place to look in another frozen world,” Sklute said. . .
“The method we used in this study will also provide a powerful tool to help us understand how things can change over time if we return from another planet. It helps us understand the variability in phases that are really below the. limit detection of the most common techniques. “Sklute said.
PSI senior scientist M. Darby Dyar is co-author of the paper.
Machine learning algorithms help scientists explore Mars. More information: Elizabeth C. Sklute et al, A Multi-Technique Analysis of Surface Materials From Blood Falls, Antarctica, Frontiers in astronomy and space sciences (2022). DOI: 10.3389 / fspas.2022.843174 Provided by Planetary Science Institute
Citation: Multiple laboratory analyzes of Antarctic minerals offer a better understanding of Mars (2022, June 25) retrieved June 25, 2022
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