In Mars Exploration

Government and University Research. In Mars exploration-related research, NASA has a robust international relationship with agencies like the European Space Agency and the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency and with governmental and university sci-entihc researchers from the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Japan, Sweden, and Switzerland. 

In Mars exploration-related research within the United States government, NASA maintains close ties with many Defense Department units, including the Naval Research Lab but particularly Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the U.S. Army, whose work involving tracked vehicles and robotics have paralleled JPL s work with rovers. 

In Mars exploration-related research within NASA itself, JPL is the most important of NASA s dozen nationwide centers. JPL, which was established by the California Institute of Technology, has formed strategic relationships with ten schools that have major commitments to space exploration Arizona State University Carnegie Mellon University Dartmouth College Massachusetts Institute of Technology Princeton University Stanford University University of Arizona University of California, Los Angeles University of Michigan and University of Southern... 

Fig. 3.14 Left. NASA Mars-Exploration-Rover (artist view courtesy NASA, JPL, Cornell). On the front side of the Rover the robotic arm carrying the Mossbauer spectrometer and other instruments can be seen in stowed position. Right, robotic arm before placement on soil target at Victoria crater rim, Meridian Planum, Mars. The Mossbauer instrument MIMOS II with its circular contact plate can be seen, pointing towards the rover camera. See also Sect. 8.3...

The miniaturized Mossbauer instruments have proven as part of the NASA Mars Exploration Rover 2003 mission that Mossbauer spectroscopy is a powerful tool for planetary exploration, including our planet Earth. For the advanced model of MIMOS II, the new detector technologies and electronic components increase sensitivity and performance significantly. In combination with the high-energy resolution of the SDD, it will be possible to perform XRF analysis in parallel to Mossbauer spectroscopy. In addition to the Fe-mineralogy, information on the sample s elemental composition will be obtained. 

Iron is one of the most abundant elements in the universe. Mossbauer (MB) spectroscopy is an established laboratory technique and a powerful tool to study Fe-bearing substances. The surface of Mars is Fe-rich compared to Earth, and a miniaturized MB spectrometer (MIMOS II) was developed for its robotic exploration as part of NASA s Mars Exploration Rover (MER) mission (Klingelhofer et al. 2003). 

Fenselau, C. Caprioli, R. Mass Spectrometry in the Exploration of Mars. J. Mass Spectrom. 2003, 38, 1-10. 

On 23 September 1999 the Mars Climate Orbiter,one of the missions in a long-tenn program of Mars exploration, birned out completely. 

It is obvious from these experiments that the absorption spectrum of the Martian red surface can be simulated reasonably well by a non-unique variety of Fe rich phases or their mixtures as can the weak magnetism, so that a positive identification will probably only be possible, following further in situ analyses and/or sample return and analysis in the lab.Two Mars Exploration Rovers (MERs) are due to arrive at Mars in 2004 and will attempt to analyze rocks and soils on the surface using several small spectrometers, including PanCAM (an extended visible region spectrometer), MiniTES (a thermal emission spectrometer), APXS (alpha proton X-ray spectrometer measuring the major elements), Mossbauer (run at current local temperature), as well as a 5-level magnet array similar to that on-board the Pathfinder Lander. 

The Mars Pathfinder rover carried an Alpha Proton X-ray Spectrometer (APXS), and the two Mars Exploration Rovers (MER - Spirit and Opportunity) carried Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometers (also called APXS, but in this case more precise versions of the Pathfinder instrument, though without the ability to monitor protons for light element analyses). These instruments contained radioactive curium sources (Fig. 13.16) whose decay produced a-particles, which irradiated target rocks and soils. The resulting characteristic X-rays provided measurements of major and minor element abundances. The MER rovers also carried Mossbauer spectrometers, which yielded information on iron oxidation state. 

The composition of Martian surface materials can be assessed using laboratory analyses of Martian meteorites, in situ APXS analyses from Mars Pathfinder and the Mars Exploration Rovers, and orbital geochemistry analyzed by GRS and derived from TES spectra. 

The Moon and Mars have very different compositions and have had very different geologic histories. However, the geochemical techniques applied to both bodies are similar, and the results illustrate the power of chemical data in planetary exploration. Combinations of... 

Bruckner, J., Dreibus, G., Gellert, R. et al. (2008) Mars Exploration Rovers Chemical composition by the APXS. In The Martian Surface Composition, Mineralogy, and Physical Properties, ed. Bell, J. F. Cambridge Cambridge University Press, pp. 58-101. 

While large commercial markets have been long in coming, aerogels have been used in NASA projects, such as Mars exploration vehicles and a space probe capturing comet-tail dust. 

Can this model published in 2003 (Marion et al. 2003a) explain all the geochemical findings of the 2004 Mars Exploration Rover (MER) missions Not exactly In our model we predicted that ferrous iron would precipitate as siderite (FeCOo) early in the temporal sequence, and siderite would ultimately be oxidized to ferric minerals such as ferrihydrite [Fe(OH)3] and hematite (FeoOo) (Fig. 5.10). There is no place in this conceptual model for the precipitation of ferrous or ferric sulfate minerals as suggested by the MER missions (Squyres et al. 2004 Lane, 2004). This problem could be simply rectified by drawing an arrow from siderite through the surface acidification... 

Figure 2 The Mars Exploration Rover Spirit s Mossbauer spectrometer. The hydroxyl containing mineral goethite (FeOOH) has been identified with this spectrometer in the Columbia Hills of Mars. This finding produced strong evidence for past water activity in the area that Spirit has been exploring. (Reproduced from web page with permission G Klingelhofer)...

These important questions will be addressed, at least in part, in future spacecraft missions. Two Mars Exploration Rovers, which are to arrive in early 2004, will carry a battery of instruments (Mossbauer, infrared, and visible spectrometers, APXS, microscopic imager, and a rock abrasion tool to remove dust and weathered coatings) that may analyze samples of the ancient crustal rocks... 

Perhaps we will learn more about this fascinating planet when the new NASA Odyssey mission and the two planned NASA Mars Exploration Rover missions launch and reach Mars in the next few years. 

There is intensive interest in Mars as a site for eventual human exploration. Several robotic missions are planned for the near future, and public debate concerning manned space exploration as well as long-term goals for NASA has renewed in the wake of the tragic loss of the space shuttle Columbia in February 2003. 

The next scheduled lander mission to Mars, Mars Exploration Rover, is due to attempt touchdown in January, 2004. Twin Mars Exploration Rovers will land at separate locations using the Pathfinder-tested airbag... 

This launch of the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit in June 2003 propelled the robot to its successful touchdown on Mars in January 2004. 

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