AMASE 2008 Blog

August 11, 2008 / Posted by: Shige Abe

The 2008 Arctic Mars Analogue Svalbard Expedition now has a blog. Follow along as team members beam reports via Iridium satellite phone.

Here is a brief overview of AMASE from Andrew Steele in the blog

What is AMASE.

Since 2003 the Arctic Mars Analogue Svalbard Expedition has been traveling to field sites on Svalbard to test the protocols, procedures and equipment needed to detect traces of organic chemistry and perhaps life on Mars. The AMASE crew over the years has consisted of over a hundred scientists and engineers from institutions around the world. AMASE is run by Hans Amundsen (Expedition Leader EPX Norway), Andrew Steele (Science Leader – Carnegie Institution of Washington), Marilyn Fogel (Management team – Carnegie Institution of Washington), Pan Conrad (Management team – JPL) and Lianne Benning (Management team – University of Leeds, UK). Currently both NASA, (through an Astrobiology Technology for Exploring Planets (ASTEP) grant A Steele, PI) and the European Space Agency (H Amundsen – PI) are testing instruments for the 2009 NASA Mars Science Laboratory mission and the 2013 ESA ExoMars mission.

From the Astrobiology Magazine’s European Edition:

With a unique combination of volcanoes, hot springs and permafrost, the Bockfjord Volcanic Complex on the Arctic islands of Svalbard is the only place on Earth with carbonate deposits identical to carbonates in the Martian meteorite ALH84001. The interaction between water, rocks and primitive life forms in this Mars-like environment provides an ideal testing ground for instruments under development for future “Search for Life” missions to Mars.

Since 2003, the Arctic Mars Analogue Svalbard Expedition (AMASE) has been traveling to field sites on Svalbard to test procedures and equipment needed to detect traces of organic chemistry and perhaps life on Mars. The AMASE crew over the years has consisted of over a hundred scientists and engineers from institutions around the world.

Currently instruments for the 2009 NASA Mars Science Laboratory mission and the 2013 ESA ExoMars mission are being tested. AMASE scientists also are testing a “cliffbot” rover system from NASA JPL. This rover concept may be used for a future Mars sample return mission. Follow along on this year’s mission through this online journal written by AMASE-ing scientists in the field at: amase2008.arc.nasa.gov