Field Trial of a Dual-Wavelength Fluorescent Emission (L.I.F.E.) Instrument and the Magma White Rover during the MARS2013 Mars Analog Mission

Abstract

We have developed a portable dual-wavelength laser fluorescence spectrometer as part of a multi-instrument optical probe to characterize mineral, organic, and microbial species in extreme environments. Operating at 405 and 532 nm, the instrument was originally designed for use by human explorers to produce a laser-induced fluorescence emission (L.I.F.E.) spectral database of the mineral and organic molecules found in the microbial communities of Earth's cryosphere. Recently, our team had the opportunity to explore the strengths and limitations of the instrument when it was deployed on a remote-controlled Mars analog rover. In February 2013, the instrument was deployed on board the Magma White rover platform during the MARS2013 Mars analog field mission in the Kess Kess formation near Erfoud, Morocco. During these tests, we followed tele-science work flows pertinent to Mars surface missions in a simulated spaceflight environment. We report on the L.I.F.E. instrument setup, data processing, and performance during field trials. A pilot postmission laboratory analysis determined that rock samples acquired during the field mission exhibited a fluorescence signal from the Sun-exposed side characteristic of chlorophyll a following excitation at 405 nm. A weak fluorescence response to excitation at 532 nm may have originated from another microbial photosynthetic pigment, phycoerythrin, but final assignment awaits development of a comprehensive database of mineral and organic fluorescence spectra. No chlorophyll fluorescence signal was detected from the shaded underside of the samples.

An Assessment of macro-scalein situRaman and ultraviolet-induced fluorescence spectroscopy for rapid characterization of frozen peat and ground ice

“…Previous studies have demonstrated the suitability of both Raman and UIF spectroscopy for astrobiology-focused microbiological investigations. While these analytical techniques have been investigated by a number of researchers, best practices for how to optimize their deployment and operation and maximize their science return in a 'real world' Mars setting are not fully resolved (e.g., Groemer et al 2014). For instance, Raman spectroscopic detection of bioindicators in terrestrial analogues of Mars often requires sample pre-processing such as the production of thin sections (Fisk et al 2003), powdering (Edwards et al 2013), culturing, or the use of enhanced (surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy -SERS), confocal and/ or microscale techniques (e.g.…”

“…While these analytical techniques have been investigated by a number of researchers, best practices for how to optimize their deployment and operation and maximize their science return in a ‘real world’ Mars setting are not fully resolved (e.g., Groemer et al . 2014). For instance, Raman spectroscopic detection of bioindicators in terrestrial analogues of Mars often requires sample pre-processing such as the production of thin sections (Fisk et al .…”

Organic Material Distribution in Mars-Analog Volcanic Rocks, as Determined with Ultraviolet Laser-Induced Fluorescence Spectroscopy

“…Previous work has demonstrated the applicability of LIF for detecting organic materials in Mars-analog samples (Smith et al, 2014;Groemer et al, 2014;Abedin et al, 2015;Eshelman et al, 2015Eshelman et al, , 2018Eshelman, 2016). However, these studies did not focus on characterizing the spatial distribution of organics within the whole-rock environment, and thus the distribution and other geological features associated with organics are not well constrained.…”