Preservation of Martian Organic and Environmental Records: Final Report of the Mars Biosignature Working Group
The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) has an instrument package capable of making measurements of past and present environmental conditions. The data generated may tell us if Mars is, or ever was, able to support life. However, the knowledge of Mars' past history and the geological processes most l...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | en_US |
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Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.
2011
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/66519 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7144-8537 |
| _version_ | 1811075504914038784 |
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| author | Amend, Jan P. Bish, David Buick, Roger Cody, George D. Des Marias, David J. Dromart, Gilles Eigenbrode, Jennifer L. Knoll, Andrew H. Sumner, Dawn Y. Summons, Roger E |
| author2 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences |
| author_facet | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences Amend, Jan P. Bish, David Buick, Roger Cody, George D. Des Marias, David J. Dromart, Gilles Eigenbrode, Jennifer L. Knoll, Andrew H. Sumner, Dawn Y. Summons, Roger E |
| author_sort | Amend, Jan P. |
| collection | MIT |
| description | The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) has an instrument package capable of making measurements of past and present environmental conditions. The data generated may tell us if Mars is, or ever was, able to support life. However, the knowledge of Mars' past history and the geological processes most likely to preserve a record of that history remain sparse and, in some instances, ambiguous. Physical, chemical, and geological processes relevant to biosignature preservation on Earth, especially under conditions early in its history when microbial life predominated, are also imperfectly known. Here, we present the report of a working group chartered by the Co-Chairs of NASA's MSL Project Science Group, John P. Grotzinger and Michael A. Meyer, to review and evaluate potential for biosignature formation and preservation on Mars.
Orbital images confirm that layered rocks achieved kilometer-scale thicknesses in some regions of ancient Mars. Clearly, interplays of sedimentation and erosional processes govern present-day exposures, and our understanding of these processes is incomplete. MSL can document and evaluate patterns of stratigraphic development as well as the sources of layered materials and their subsequent diagenesis. It can also document other potential biosignature repositories such as hydrothermal environments. These capabilities offer an unprecedented opportunity to decipher key aspects of the environmental evolution of Mars' early surface and aspects of the diagenetic processes that have operated since that time.
Considering the MSL instrument payload package, we identified the following classes of biosignatures as within the MSL detection window: organism morphologies (cells, body fossils, casts), biofabrics (including microbial mats), diagnostic organic molecules, isotopic signatures, evidence of biomineralization and bioalteration, spatial patterns in chemistry, and biogenic gases. Of these, biogenic organic molecules and biogenic atmospheric gases are considered the most definitive and most readily detectable by MSL. Key Words: Astrobiology—Atmospheric gases—Mars—Biosignatures—Life detection. Astrobiology 11, 157–181. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T10:07:11Z |
| format | Article |
| id | mit-1721.1/66519 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| language | en_US |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T10:07:11Z |
| publishDate | 2011 |
| publisher | Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/665192024-05-15T02:17:47Z Preservation of Martian Organic and Environmental Records: Final Report of the Mars Biosignature Working Group Amend, Jan P. Bish, David Buick, Roger Cody, George D. Des Marias, David J. Dromart, Gilles Eigenbrode, Jennifer L. Knoll, Andrew H. Sumner, Dawn Y. Summons, Roger E Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences Summons, Roger Everett Summons, Roger Everett The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) has an instrument package capable of making measurements of past and present environmental conditions. The data generated may tell us if Mars is, or ever was, able to support life. However, the knowledge of Mars' past history and the geological processes most likely to preserve a record of that history remain sparse and, in some instances, ambiguous. Physical, chemical, and geological processes relevant to biosignature preservation on Earth, especially under conditions early in its history when microbial life predominated, are also imperfectly known. Here, we present the report of a working group chartered by the Co-Chairs of NASA's MSL Project Science Group, John P. Grotzinger and Michael A. Meyer, to review and evaluate potential for biosignature formation and preservation on Mars. Orbital images confirm that layered rocks achieved kilometer-scale thicknesses in some regions of ancient Mars. Clearly, interplays of sedimentation and erosional processes govern present-day exposures, and our understanding of these processes is incomplete. MSL can document and evaluate patterns of stratigraphic development as well as the sources of layered materials and their subsequent diagenesis. It can also document other potential biosignature repositories such as hydrothermal environments. These capabilities offer an unprecedented opportunity to decipher key aspects of the environmental evolution of Mars' early surface and aspects of the diagenetic processes that have operated since that time. Considering the MSL instrument payload package, we identified the following classes of biosignatures as within the MSL detection window: organism morphologies (cells, body fossils, casts), biofabrics (including microbial mats), diagnostic organic molecules, isotopic signatures, evidence of biomineralization and bioalteration, spatial patterns in chemistry, and biogenic gases. Of these, biogenic organic molecules and biogenic atmospheric gases are considered the most definitive and most readily detectable by MSL. Key Words: Astrobiology—Atmospheric gases—Mars—Biosignatures—Life detection. Astrobiology 11, 157–181. 2011-10-20T16:06:58Z 2011-10-20T16:06:58Z 2011-03 2010-06 Article http://purl.org/eprint/type/JournalArticle 1531-1074 1557-8070 http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/66519 Summons, Roger E. et al. "Preservation of Martian Organic and Environmental Records: Final Report of the Mars Biosignature Working Group." Astrobiology. March 2011, 11(2): 157-181. ©2011 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7144-8537 en_US http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/ast.2010.0506 Astrobiology Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use. application/pdf Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. Mary Ann Liebert |
| spellingShingle | Amend, Jan P. Bish, David Buick, Roger Cody, George D. Des Marias, David J. Dromart, Gilles Eigenbrode, Jennifer L. Knoll, Andrew H. Sumner, Dawn Y. Summons, Roger E Preservation of Martian Organic and Environmental Records: Final Report of the Mars Biosignature Working Group |
| title | Preservation of Martian Organic and Environmental Records: Final Report of the Mars Biosignature Working Group |
| title_full | Preservation of Martian Organic and Environmental Records: Final Report of the Mars Biosignature Working Group |
| title_fullStr | Preservation of Martian Organic and Environmental Records: Final Report of the Mars Biosignature Working Group |
| title_full_unstemmed | Preservation of Martian Organic and Environmental Records: Final Report of the Mars Biosignature Working Group |
| title_short | Preservation of Martian Organic and Environmental Records: Final Report of the Mars Biosignature Working Group |
| title_sort | preservation of martian organic and environmental records final report of the mars biosignature working group |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/66519 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7144-8537 |
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