2006 Annual Science Report
Astrobiology Roadmap Objective 7.1 Reports Reporting | JUL 2005 – JUN 2006
Roadmap Objective 7.1—Biosignatures to be sought in Solar System materials
Project Reports
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Project 6. Molecular and Isotopic Biosignatures
Co-Investigator Steele and Postdoctoral Fellow Marc Fries used the new WiTec Raman imaging system to begin the examination of in situ carbon formation in a variety of samples, including Precambrian rocks and samples from a Mars analog site in Svalbard.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1 3.1 4.1 4.2 5.3 6.1 6.2 7.1 7.2 -
Iron and Sulfur-Based Biospheres and Their Biosignatures
A core focus for the research within the BioMars project has centered on the topic of microbial communities sustained by iron and sulfur cycling, as these elements are abundant at the Mars surface and exist in multiple redox states, as would be required if they play a metabolic role. Our team has investigated a number of potential Earth analog systems, with a view to understanding their geochemistry, microbiology, and potential biosignatures.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 4.1 7.1 7.2 -
Planetary Biology, Evolution, and Intelligence
Chris Chyba, Cynthia Phillips, Kevin Hand- The project has two components. The first, an overview of the astrobiological potential of various geological features on Europa, is proceeding well — we are continuing the study of various proposed formation mechanisms for different feature types such as ridges, bands, and chaotic terrain.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1 1.2 2.1 2.2 3.1 3.2 4.1 4.2 5.1 5.2 5.3 6.1 6.2 7.1 -
Building a Habitable Planet: The Geological Record
Research continued in the following 6 areas: late Archean — early Paleoproterozoic hydrocarbon biomarker molecules, Archean sulfur isotopes and sulfur cycling, metamorphism of early Archean biosignatures, nutrient availability (N, P) in Precambrian oceans, paleobarometry of the Archean atmosphere and diamond drilling of astrobiologically significant Archean and early Proterozoic sedimentary horizons in the Pilbara Craton of Australia. Field-work was conducted on early Archean supracrustal rocks of the Fortescue, Warrawoona and Coonterunah Groups in the Pilbara Craton, Australia and the Isua Supracrustal Belt, Greenland.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 4.1 4.2 7.1 -
Climate, Habitability, and the Atmosphere on Early Mars
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1 1.2 2.1 4.1 7.1 -
Biosignatures in Chemosynthetic and Photosynthetic Systems
During the past year, our team has made strong contributions in research, mission involvement, synergistic community activities, and education & public outreach.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1 4.1 5.1 5.2 6.1 7.1 7.2 -
Design and Assembly of a Cavity-Ring Down Spectrometer for Determination of Concentration and Isotopic Composition of Methane in Gases
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1 3.2 3.3 4.1 5.2 5.3 6.2 7.1 7.2 -
Identifying Microbial Life at Crustal Rock-Water Interfaces
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 4.1 4.2 5.2 5.3 6.1 7.1 -
The Evolution and Diversity of Ancient CO2-fixation Pathways in Anaerobic and Extremophilic Microorganisms: Clues to the Early Evolution of Life on Earth
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 4.1 5.3 6.1 7.1 -
Project 4. Prebiotic Molecular Selection and Organization
Studies in molecular self-organization continued to focus on amphiphilic molecules, which are molecules that possess both hydrophobic and hydrophilic regions. These molecules tend to self-organize spontaneously in an aqueous environment.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.1 3.2 3.4 4.1 7.1 -
Project 3. Prebiotic Chemical and Isotopic Evolution on Earth
In the past year Doctoral Student David Johnston and Co-I Farquhar determined for the first time the different types of isotopic signatures produced by different sulfur metabolisms. including sulfate-reducing bacteria, sulfite-disproportionating bacteria, and sulfur-disproportionating bacteria. These observations permitted calibration of the first global sulfur isotope models.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 3.1 4.1 4.2 7.1 -
Microbial and Biogeochemical Characterization of Terrestrial Analogue Sites for Life in the Subsurface of Mars.
Onstott and McGown collected ground water from boreholes intersection fractures at depths of 890 and 1100 meters below the surface at the Lupin gold mine, Nunavat Territories March 2005 using 0.2 μm borosilicate filters and 0.2 μm hollow-fiber filters and running the borehole water through these filters for 2-3 day
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1 2.2 5.1 5.2 5.3 6.1 6.2 7.1 -
Prebiotic Organics From Space
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1 3.1 3.4 4.3 7.1 7.2 -
The Virtual Planetary Laboratory – The Life Modules
Field research on the freshwater bacteria of Cuatro Cienegas, Mexico (Siefert). These communities are good proxies for early earth type bacterially-dominated systems. To understand the community dynamics that lead to microbialite (general term for structures produced by microbial precipitation) the metagenomes of two microbialites, from two separate regions of the system were performed using 454 sequencing technology.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 4.1 4.2 5.3 6.1 6.2 7.1 7.2 -
Origins and Signatures of Biogenic Hydrocarbons – Controls on the Transition From Abiogenic Geochemistry to Biotic Systems in the Deep Subsurface and Identification of Signature for Life
Studies of deep subsurface, ecosystems hosted by ancient groundwater are directly relevant to the exploration for extant life in the subsurface of Mars. Laboratory investigations focus on determining the types of prebiotic compounds that form in the subsurface and assessing whether life itself could have been spawned beneath a planet’s surface. Field investigations focus on deep subsurface groundwater sampled at commercial mines in South African and Canadian Archaean rocks.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1 2.1 3.1 4.1 4.2 6.1 7.1 7.2 -
Relationship Between Hydrogeology and Microbiology at Active Springs
We are currently investigating a sulfur spring system in a zone of high deformation in the central coast range of California. This system presents opportunities to study multiple, sustained groundwater discharge sites with environmental gradients affecting extant microbial communities.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1 2.1 4.2 5.2 7.1 -
Project 7. Astrobiotechnology
Co-Investigator Steele and colleagues have continued to develop the Modular Assays for Solar System Exploration (MASSE) concept, which uses microfluidic technology to incubate a DNA or protein microarray.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1 2.2 3.1 3.2 4.2 5.3 6.2 7.1 -
Early Oceans on Mars
The idea that standing bodies of water might once have existed on Mars’ surface is supported by several lines of evidence, including geologic and topographic features near the margins of the northern lowlands that have been interpreted as shorelines formed by ancient oceans
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1 4.1 7.1 7.2 -
Cosmic Ice Laboratory: Organic Synthesis in Energetically Processed Ices
In the Cosmic Ice Laboratory we simulate the vacuum and low-temperature environment of space using a high-vacuum chamber and a cryostat. Ice samples condensed on a cooled mirror inside the cryostat are irradiated with 1 MeV protons to simulate cosmic-ray bombardment or are photolyzed to simulate vacuum-ultraviolet (UV) exposure.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.2 3.1 7.1 -
Re-Tracing Steps Towards a Habitable World: The Biogeochemical Evolution of Sulfur on the Early Earth.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1 4.1 4.2 5.3 7.1 -
Isotopic Fingerprints of Past Life and Surface Conditions on Mars
We have advanced the research on five fronts. (1) Our work in collaboration with the Dietrich group reached fruition as high-quality He-3 exposure ages were determined for the Box Canyon basalts of south central Idaho.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1 2.1 7.1 -
Evolution of Atmospheric O2, Climate, and Biosphere (Ohmoto)
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1 2.1 4.1 4.3 5.1 5.2 6.1 7.1 -
Exploring Conditions for Habitability in Our Solar System
Subsurface Habitability on Mars: Armstrong and Sondossi (2005) are exploring the stability of deep subsurface environments (3-6 km) on Mars. Thermal diffusion models indicate that temperature fluctuations at these depths are minor, and provide reasonable environments for sub-surface life, perhaps probed by the recent detection of methane in Mars’ atmosphere.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1 2.2 4.1 6.2 7.1 -
Searching for Life on Mars: Interpretation of Remote-Sensing Observations of Methane
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1 7.1 -
Summary of Activities in the Astrobiology Analytical Laboratory
Dworkin has been active in the lab section of the GCA Astrobiology Team by operating the Astrobiology Analytical Laboratory and collaborating with numerous other laboratories. This involves the creation and maintenance of a world-class organic analytical laboratory. In the last year he developed the methodology for the detection of chiral amino acids at the femtomole level in a variety of laboratory and natural samples.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 1.1 2.1 2.2 3.1 7.1 -
Progress Report for APL Effort in Goddard Center for Astrobiology
Theme 4 work at JHU/APL using laser time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOF-MS) techniques continues in collaboration with the Goddard Center for Astrobiology (GCA) team and external partners.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.2 3.1 3.2 7.1 -
Iceland Subglacial Biology Exploration (ISBOX)
Subglacial lakes are the focus of studies of life in extreme environments because they may resemble habitats on Mars and icy satellites in the outer solar system. ISBOX II succeeded in drilling through 300 meters of glacial ice to sample a subglacial lake beneath the Vatnajökull glacier in Iceland, in June 2006.
ROADMAP OBJECTIVES: 2.1 2.2 5.3 6.2 7.1