Mars on Earth: And then?

A return campaign of Mars samples would bring back samples of the red planet to Earth for examination in the best land laboratories. However, the choice of samples and their storage on Mars are only part of the vast campaign planned by mission designers and scientists.

A series of missions under planning will set a new benchmark for the technological achievements of mankind, NASA and ESA aiming to bring back samples of the Martian surface.

The campaign plans three launches from Earth and one since March, two Martian rovers and an autonomous rendezvous and docking in Martian orbit, more than 50 million kilometers from the ground control.

The Mars return campaign aims to bring back Martian material from the Jezero crater that once housed a lake and contains an ancient delta of the preserved river. The rocks of the region will have preserved information on the long and diverse geological history of Mars.

Mars sampling will allow humanity to significantly expand our knowledge of the neighboring planet, its geology and its climate history.

With engineers in Europe and the United States ready to take up the challenge, scientists are eager to receive the first samples from another planet. They have already begun to study and prepare how they will analyze the precious, the rocks, the dust and the gas once the samples have been returned to Earth.

Control of containment and contamination

An important question is how to analyze the samples while protecting them from contamination by the chemical signatures of the Earth and keeping them in a confined and secure environment.

Upon arrival, the samples will be quarantined, in the image of the lunar rocks that returned to Earth during the Apollo and Luna Moon missions. International guidelines on planetary protection are being revised for the preparation of Martian samples and an update incorporating a more modern technology.

Quarantine will take place in a sample receiving facility, where samples will already provide a wealth of information to scientists even before they open. Any martian dust that may cover the outside of the sample tubes can be analyzed and non-invasive techniques such as X-ray examinations can be used even on unopened tubes.

Once the sample tubes are open, a predetermined set of initial measurements will generate a detailed catalog of information, which will allow specialized scientific investigations to target specific parts of the samples.

Messages in bottles

"The sample tubes will contain Martian rocks, dust and the atmosphere," says Elliot Sefton-Nash, a scientist from the MSR study at the Scientific Assistance Office of the USSR. l & # 39; ESA. "Even if the plan is to open the tubes in a confined and inert environment, for a few moments the clock will begin to measure: for example, gases trapped in the sample could begin to mix with their own. environment, which could change the Martian chemical signatures that we want to measure. "

The choice of order to deal with the multitude of measurements that scientists wish to make is a puzzle of interplanetary proportions. Samples may need to be sterilized in accordance with the planetary protection protocol, which may require heat, chemical or heat treatment. But the sterilization procedure itself could alter some specimens in relation to their original state, which means that some "sterilization-sensitive" assays must be performed inside the confinement before sterilization not be done.

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The good news is that a recent publication from the scientific planning group on returning samples to Mars indicates that about three quarters of all measurements can be made after sterilization.

The order of further investigations is important because some measures will influence others. Some have to destroy the samples to get results, and not all measurements can be done on all samples. The laboratory itself can be a decisive factor – accurate carbon measurement will require strict control over the amount of carbon that can be used in the laboratory. Therefore, an all-metal laboratory may be needed to obtain valid results. On the other hand, a metallurgical laboratory would contaminate the samples for other measurements, so it is necessary to establish a proper balance. Another puzzle is to ensure that the best scientific analysis of samples in the best laboratories in the world is done.

Following ESA's Space19 + Council, which will decide on the future and scope of ESA's participation in the March Return Campaign, participating agencies ( currently NASA and ESA), in consultation with the scientific and technological communities, will continue to solve the challenge of making better discoveries with samples returned from Mars.

"The return of samples to Mars would constitute a considerable advance for the science and exploration of the solar system," concludes Sanjay Vijendran, coordinator of the March campaign's return of samples to Mars. ESA. "The samples will advance our understanding of Mars, the history of our solar system, and help us plan our future exploration missions."

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