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The role of Raman spectroscopy as an astrobiological tool in the exploration of Mars
Author(s) -
Ellery Alex,
WynnWilliams David,
Parnell John,
Edwards Howell G. M.,
Dickensheets David
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
journal of raman spectroscopy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.748
H-Index - 110
eISSN - 1097-4555
pISSN - 0377-0486
DOI - 10.1002/jrs.1189
Subject(s) - martian , mars exploration program , astrobiology , exploration of mars , raman spectroscopy , life on mars , regolith , environmental science , physics , optics
We describe how the exploration of the Martian environment would be considerably enhanced through the use of Raman spectroscopy. Furthermore, Raman spectroscopy is particularly suited for both mineralogical analysis of Martian rock and soil and for the detection of fossilised biota from former Martian micro‐organisms. We outline astrobiologically relevant features of the Martian environment and issues related to the detection of biotic residues. We further discuss the possibility of the emergence of photosynthetic bacteria on early Mars which may have left fossil evidence. We describe how Raman spectroscopy may be deployed for both astrobiological and mineralogical investigation, particularly in search of pigmented biomolecules, and describe the requirements for a spaceflight‐qualified version of a Raman spectrometer for deployment on Mars. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.