Utilization of nondestructive techniques for analysis of the Martian meteorite NWA 6963 and its implications for astrobiology

Abstract

Martian meteorites are excellent study materials for understanding the present and past of Mars, as they are important historical astrophysical artifacts because they possess information about Martian geological evolution and physical and chemical characteristics. In our case, we analyzed the NWA 6963 Martian meteorite classified as basaltic shergottite because of its chemical structure. A computerized microtomography (μCT) study in the NWA 6963 Martian meteorite provided us with 2D and 3D images that were extremely useful for ascertaining the internal structure of the analyzed sample and gave us the opportunity to find a crumpled material with a very peculiar structural format. In addition, it was possible to observe through the μCT that this encrusted material also has a completely different density of the meteorite. Calcium, strontium, and potassium were detected qualitatively, among others through the technique of X-ray fluorescence. | INTRODUCTIONMars is a rocky planet very similar to Earth. In this way, if we can understand how their planetary evolution occurred, through comparative analysis, we could generate generalizations of physical processes in the formation between the planets and also obtain possible hints of how could been the initial history of our planet and also of the red planet. [1,2] Although most of the geological records have been destroyed, just as happened on Earth, the geological evolution of the Martian surface, its physical information, and chemical characteristics can still be studied through the Martian meteorites. [3,4] Fundamentally, we can see meteorites as rocks of great importance because of the vast amount of information they can give us about the primordial material that formed the planets of our solar system. [5,6] Thus, through the objects ejected from the Martian surface, such as NWA 6963, it is possible, through analytical techniques, to investigate chemical, physical, and geological information, which can help, for example, to define requirements for missions to Mars. [7,8] Finally, another interest very special related to Mars is the possibility that the planet has been habitable, that is, have had the conditions necessary for life to have established itself in the past. Thus, to search for these types of information, the Martian meteorites are of extreme relevance because through them are made research related to the interior of the planet. [9] It also studied the possible presence of water by analyzing the composition of volatile chemical elements in Martian meteorites [10] and the origin and age of the Martian crust, [11][12][13] and there are researches related to the search for fossils, bacteria, or traces of organic compounds in Martian meteorites. [14][15][16][17] Thus, we will try to emphasize and demonstrate in this work the discovery we made and the importance of using nondestructive analytical techniques such as μCT and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) in the preliminary analysis to obtain information on fragments of meteorites. For this, we will demonstrate the effi...

Probing the chemical and mineralogical characteristics of the Martian meteorite NWA 7397 through μRaman and μXRF non-destructively

“…Here, we report some information about the elemental chemical composition and mineralogical characteristics for the Martian shergottite NWA 7397 obtained through non-destructive processes, in other words, was maintained the physical integrity of the material/object (Nascimento-Dias et al . 2018). Essentially, were used two techniques to analyse the sample.…”

Characterization of carbonate rocks through X‐ray microfluorescence and X‐ray computed microtomography

“…The micro‐CT combined with micro‐XRF technique was already applied to different types of natural material, as siliciclastic rocks, meteorites, and decorative rocks . The 3D visualization of the elemental distribution is a problem when the matrix is very dense and the mineralogy is not diverse (e.g., sandstone).…”

Combination between Ca, P and Y in the Martian Meteorite NWA 6963 could be used as a strategy to indicate liquid water reservoirs on ancient Mars?

“…2). Thus, the interest of using the Micro X-ray fluorescence (μXRF) technique in the meteorite Northwest Africa (NWA) 6963 is to obtain data and to investigate the possible presence of minerals that offer relevant information about Mars for Astrobiology (Brolly et al, 2018; do Nascimento-Dias et al ., 2018; Nascimento-Dias et al ., 2018).

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