Multiple lab analyses of Antarctic minerals offer a better understanding of Mars

The results of multiple lab analyses of minerals found in samples of material fromAntarctica could give scientists a better understanding of the surface and subsurface environment of Mars.

Blood Falls at the end of Taylor Glacier was the site of intermittent brine discharge that was collected by the University of Tennessee. The brine comes from a body of water that has been isolated for a long time. The brine flow deposits material that is the surface of a subterranean environment that hosts a thriving community of life. Blood Falls was named after the deposits of reddens on the surface after time had passed. The surface grab samples were subjected to a number of tests. The samples were further characterized using a variety of methods, including X-ray diffract, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy.

We analyzed the samples by shining light on them. The bonds and atoms react in a variety of ways. The author of "A Multi-Technique Analysis of Surface Materials from Blood Falls, Antarctica" said that using them all together allowed them to figure out what was there.

One technique may be good at telling you if certain things are there and another may completely miss it, simply because the bonds or atoms don't react to those energies. The results show the strengths and weaknesses of different analytical methods and underscore the need for more than one technique to inform the complex mineralogy at this locale.

We have determined that the deposit is mostly carbonates and that the red color of Bloody Falls is due to the oxidation of dissolved ferrous ion in the air. Instead of forming ferric minerals, which is what happens on Earth, this brine turns into a bunch of other elements, like chlorine and salt. Amorphous materials have been found to be abundant in the crater. We do not know what the material on Mars is made of. It's exciting to find what may be similar on Earth.

This isn't a biosignature because it isn't produced by the microbes, but by the chemistry where they live. A road map for a place to look on another frozen world is what it gives.

The method we have used in this study will allow us to understand how things can change if we return from another planet. It helps us understand the variability in phases that are below detection limits.

M. Dyar is a senior scientist at the institute.

More information: Elizabeth C. Sklute et al, A Multi-Technique Analysis of Surface Materials From Blood Falls, Antarctica, Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences (2022). DOI: 10.3389/fspas.2022.843174