Mathematics – Logic
Scientific paper
Sep 2008
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2008epsc.conf..855w&link_type=abstract
European Planetary Science Congress 2008, Proceedings of the conference held 21-25 September, 2008 in Münster, Germany. Online a
Mathematics
Logic
Scientific paper
Abstract The landscape of Mars, despite its apparent hostility to life, is riddled with geological and mineralogical signs of past or present hydrological activity. As such, it is a key target for astrobiological exploration. There are, however, many factors that will need to be considered when planning in-situ and sample return missions, if these missions are indeed to adequately exploit the science potential of this intriguing world. These will not only take into account the environment of the landing site in terms of topography and ambient atmosphere etc., but also the geochemical make up of the surface regolith, evidence of hydrological processes and various other considerations. The knowledge base in all aspects of Martian science is being added to on an almost daily basis, and the aim of this work is to combine data and studies to nominate top priority landing locations for the search for evidence of life on Mars. We report in particular on science and technical criteria and our data analysis for sites of astrobiological interest. This includes information from previous missions (such as Mars Express, MGS, Odyssey, MRO and MER rovers) on mineralogical composition, geomorphology, evidence from past water history from imaging and spectroscopic data, and existence of in-situ prior information from landers and rovers (concerning evidences for volatiles, organics and habitability conditions). We discuss key mission objectives, and assess what sort of sites should be targeted in the light of these. We consider the accessibility of chosen locations, taking into account difficulties presented in accessing the polar regions and other regions of high altitude. We describe what additional measurements are needed, and outline the technical and scientific operations requirements of such in-situ landers and sample return missions. Approach In the first step of this study we focus on the science objectives of in-situ and sample return missions to Mars. We investigate the evidence for extinct or extant life, propose a criteria for astrobiological interest, and characterise landing sites in the light of this criteria. This first step thus focuses on the question of where such missions should land, and why. In the second step, we extend this analysis into utilising real data to design mission scenarios for each of the proposed sites. This further step takes into account the safety, instruments and payloads, as well as the technological and engineering constraints of such missions. In this way, the second step addresses the question of what could be done, and how, once the landing sites have been chosen. In the final step we conduct a comparative study of in-situ and sample return missions with reference to the candidate sites.
Foing Bernard H.
Monaghan E.
Wills Danielle
No associations
LandOfFree
Selecting a landing site of astrobiological interest for Mars landers and sample return missions does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with Selecting a landing site of astrobiological interest for Mars landers and sample return missions, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Selecting a landing site of astrobiological interest for Mars landers and sample return missions will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1795197