Science from the Extended Mission of the Phoenix Mars Lander
Lead Research Organisation:
Imperial College London
Department Name: Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Abstract
NASA's Phoenix Lander landed on 25-May-2008 in the polar environment of Mars at 68 degrees north, and has taken a close-up look at Mars' surface. The nominal mission was set to last about 3 months, but the mission is still going and has been extended. It will probably keep going until Martian winter closes in, in early 2009. Our work will capitalize on the results to date and support the extended mission operations. Phoenix has a robotic arm, which digs into the ground, and has found ice lying just 5-10 cm below the surface. It has also scooped up samples for analysis and measured the local climate with weather sensors. The overall purpose is to look for clues about where the ice came from, what the soil is made of, and whether microbes might have lived in Mars' early history. Our contribution to the mission will help understand Mars in three ways. Firstly, we will analyze microscopic pictures of the soil particles and use this knowledge to suggest where the lander should scoop up further samples in its extended mission so that we can learn more. We will examine these pictures to determine whether the soil was once deposited from sediments in a lake or sea, carried there by the wind, thrown up by asteroid impact, or came from the erosion and break down of volcanic rocks. Secondly, Phoenix has an experiment where soil scooped up by the robotic arm is mixed with water. Salts in the soil dissolve and probes measure the type of salts, for example whether sodium chloride is present, the salt people use on food. So far, the experiment has discovered that the soil is slightly alkaline, very like that of seawater, and contains components such as magnesium, potassium, and sodium. By analyzing the data further and considering it in detail, we hope to determine whether the salts on Mars were left behind when water dried up or whether the salts came from more recent chemical reactions in the atmosphere and soil. Thirdly, when the Phoenix spacecraft fell to the surface of Mars from space it was slowed down by friction with the air. The rate that the lander decelerated depended on the air density and temperature. We have used the deceleration measurements for a preliminary calculation of how the air density and temperature changed with height. We found that the atmosphere below about 60 km height is unusually warm compared to predictions from the sort of computer models that are similar to those that predict weather on the Earth. We will do more detailed analysis to understand this discrepancy and learn information about the climate, for example, whether there were clouds present during landing or whether the air held lots of dust. We also hope to learn if the unusual atmosphere explains why Phoenix overshot its intended landing site. The microscopy station on Phoenix, that forms a large chunk of our research, consists of an optical microscope that takes colour and ultraviolet pictures and a very-high-resolution microscope called an atomic-force microscope, or AFM. The AFM can image the surfaces of particles smaller than the width of a human hair. These surfaces give us clues about how particles break down and some suggest the decay of volcanic minerals into clays. We plan to do some lab experiments to see if we can replicate on Earth some features seen on Mars. Our research is a great opportunity for a UK contribution to a high profile international Mars mission at modest cost. This research will therefore help to build up the UK's experience of landing on Mars and continue to bring Mars exploration to the UK public.
People |
ORCID iD |
William Pike (Principal Investigator) | |
David Catling (Co-Investigator) |
Publications
Banerdt W
(2020)
Initial results from the InSight mission on Mars
in Nature Geoscience
Carpenter J
(2010)
Life Sciences Investigations for ESA's First Lunar Lander
in Earth, Moon, and Planets
Claus D
(2013)
Dual wavelength optical metrology using ptychography
in Journal of Optics
Goetz W
(2012)
Search for ultraviolet luminescence of soil particles at the Phoenix landing site, Mars
in Planetary and Space Science
Goetz W
(2010)
Microscopy analysis of soils at the Phoenix landing site, Mars: Classification of soil particles and description of their optical and magnetic properties
in Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets
Gowen R
(2011)
Penetrators for in situ subsurface investigations of Europa
in Advances in Space Research
Hecht M
(2008)
Microscopy capabilities of the Microscopy, Electrochemistry, and Conductivity Analyzer
in Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets
Leer K
(2008)
Magnetic properties experiments and the Surface Stereo Imager calibration target onboard the Mars Phoenix 2007 Lander: Design, calibration, and science goals
in Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets
Mellon M
(2009)
Ground ice at the Phoenix Landing Site: Stability state and origin
in Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets
Pike W
(2011)
Quantification of the dry history of the Martian soil inferred from in situ microscopy PSD OF MARTIAN SOIL
in Geophysical Research Letters
Smith P
(2008)
Introduction to special section on the Phoenix Mission: Landing Site Characterization Experiments, Mission Overviews, and Expected Science
in Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets
Smith PH
(2009)
H2O at the Phoenix landing site.
in Science (New York, N.Y.)
Description | The structure of the soil of Mars at unprecedented resolution |
Exploitation Route | To determine the microstructure of planetary bodies |
Sectors | Aerospace Defence and Marine Environment |
URL | http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/phoenix/news/phoenix-20080814.html |
Description | Phoenix mission |
Organisation | National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) |
Department | Jet Propulsion Laboratory |
Country | United States |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | Provision of micro machined substrates fir the study of the dust and soil of Mars |
Collaborator Contribution | NASA: provision of spacecraft JPL: provision of other parts of the instrument payload University of Neufchatel: provision of an atomic force microscope |
Impact | Investigation of the microstructure of the Martian surface on the Phoenix Mission |
Description | Phoenix mission |
Organisation | National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) |
Country | United States |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | Provision of micro machined substrates fir the study of the dust and soil of Mars |
Collaborator Contribution | NASA: provision of spacecraft JPL: provision of other parts of the instrument payload University of Neufchatel: provision of an atomic force microscope |
Impact | Investigation of the microstructure of the Martian surface on the Phoenix Mission |
Description | Phoenix mission |
Organisation | University of Neuchatel |
Country | Switzerland |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Provision of micro machined substrates fir the study of the dust and soil of Mars |
Collaborator Contribution | NASA: provision of spacecraft JPL: provision of other parts of the instrument payload University of Neufchatel: provision of an atomic force microscope |
Impact | Investigation of the microstructure of the Martian surface on the Phoenix Mission |
Description | BBC radio and television appearances |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Public outreach on Mars exploration |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2008,2009,2010,2011,2012,2013,2014 |
Description | Participation in the BBC's How to put a Human on Mars |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | High level of public interest in terms of response to website Appearance at the Imperial Science Festival |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
URL | http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-23349496 |