Search

The MIRS (MMX InfraRed Spectrometer) infrared spectrometer is part of the scientific payload of JAXA's (Japanese Space Agency) Martian Moon eXploration (MMX) mission. From the reflected sunlight by the planetary surfaces, MIRS will provide information on the Mars atmosphere and the mineralogy and chemistry of its moons. Spectra carried out by the instrument (0.9–3.6 |$\mu$| m) include the thermal emission from the surface, which needs to be modelled and removed to extract the compositional information. In this study, to find an efficient and rapid way to thermally correct infrared data, we developed a simple thermal emission correction based on blackbody fits, and quantify its relative error. To test the method, we generated synthetic spectra of Phobos by using a thermophysical model. We found that the method can produce reflectance spectra with only a few per cent errors, although some undercorrection of the thermal contribution is observed. Compositional information may still be retrieved through the position of absorption bands, despite the thermal emission correction can leave some uncertainties in its strength. We conclude that the method could be used for a first and quick analysis for interpretation of the MIRS data. We also applied our thermal correction methodology to real CRISM (Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars) observations of Phobos. The method looks reliable with a satisfactory removal of the thermal contribution, confirms the presence of an absorption band centred around 2.8 |$\mu$| m, and reveals an apparent absorption at 3.2 |$\mu$| m. However, we are not able to confirm the reality of the 3.2 |$\mu$| m band at this stage, because of the presence of an artefact in CRISM data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On Earth, carbonate minerals are widely used as recorders of the geological environments in which they formed. Here, we present a method designed to retrieve the crystal chemistry of Fe‐Mg carbonate minerals using infrared remote sensing or Raman spectroscopy. We analyzed a suite of well‐characterized Fe‐Mg carbonate minerals for which Raman spectra were obtained in two different laboratories, and IR spectra were measured in reflectance and transmission from the visible range to 25‐μm. We built calibration lines for the dependence of fundamental and harmonic vibrational modes position to the Mg# (defined as Mg# = 100 × Mg/(Mg + Fe + Ca + Mn)). These calibrations should enable retrieval of Mg# based on spectroscopic observations with a typical accuracy of 10. We discuss the framework of applicability of these calibrations and apply them to a typical CRISM spectrum of carbonates from the Nilli Fossae region of Mars. Key Points: Fundamental FeMg carbonate mode position have a linear dependence to Mg# for Fe‐Mg carbonate mineralHarmonic bands at 2.3 and 2.5 also have a linear dependence of their position with Mg# for Fe‐Mg carbonate mineralsWe present calibration curves of Mg# versus fundamental and harmonic vibration position than can be used to retrieve crystal chemistry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Hayabusa2 mission from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) returned to the Earth samples of carbonaceous asteroid (162173) Ryugu. This mission offers a unique opportunity to investigate in the laboratory samples from a C‐type asteroid, without physical or chemical alteration by the terrestrial atmosphere. Here, we report on an investigation of the mineralogy and the organo‐chemistry of Hayabusa2 samples using a combination of micro‐ and nano‐infrared spectroscopy. Particles investigated with conventional FTIR spectroscopy have spectra dominated by phyllosilicate‐related absorption, as observed for samples of CI‐chondrites, selected ungrouped carbonaceous chondrites, and selected hydrated micrometeorites. Ryugu samples show smaller sulfate‐related absorption than CI‐chondrites. Our samples that were only briefly exposed to the Earth atmosphere show absorptions related to molecular water, revealing fast terrestrial contamination of the spectral signature at 3 μm. Overall, our FTIR data are in agreement with other work done on Ryugu samples, revealing a low degree of mineralogical variability across Ryugu samples. AFM‐IR mapping of the grains shows the presence of a micrometer‐sized organic globule in one of our analyzed grains. The AFM‐IR spectra obtained on this globule are similar to IR spectra obtained on IOM suggesting that it is constituted of refractory organic matter. This globule may host silicate in its interior, with a different mineralogy than bulk Ryugu phyllosilicate. The shape, presence of peculiar silicate, and the nature of organic constituting the globule point toward a pre‐accretionary origin of this globule and that at least part of Ryugu organics were inherited from the protosolar nebulae or the interstellar media. Altogether, our results show the similarities between Ryugu samples and CI chondrites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Hayabusa2 mission sampled Ryugu, an asteroid that did not suffer extensive thermal metamorphism, and returned rocks to the Earth with no significant air exposure. It therefore offers a unique opportunity to study the redox state of carbonaceous Cb‐type asteroids and evaluate the overall redox state of the most primitive rocks of the solar system. An analytical framework was developed to investigate the iron mineralogy and valence state in extraterrestrial material at the micron scale by combining x‐ray diffraction, conventional Mössbauer (MS), and nuclear forward scattering (NFS) spectroscopies. An array of standard minerals was analyzed and cross‐calibrated between MS and NFS. Then, MS and NFS spectra on three Ryugu grains were collected at the bulk and the micron scales. In Ryugu samples, iron is essentially accommodated in magnetite, clay minerals (serpentine–smectite), and sulfides. Only a single set of Mössbauer parameters was necessary to account for the entire variability observed in MS and NFS spectra, at all spatial scales investigated. These parameters therefore make up a fully consistent iron mineralogical model for the Ryugu samples. As far as MS and NFS spectroscopies are concerned, Ryugu grains are overall similar to each other and share most of their mineralogical features with CI‐type chondrites. In detail however, no ferrihydrite is found in Ryugu particles even at the very sensitive scale of Mössbauer spectroscopy. The typical Fe3+/Fetot of clay minerals is much lower than typical redox ratios measured in CI chondrites (Fe3+/Fetot = 85%–90%). Furthermore, magnetite from Ryugu is stoichiometric with no significant maghemite component, whereas up to 12% of maghemite was previously identified in the Orgueil's so‐called magnetite. These differences suggest that most CI meteorites suffered terrestrial alteration and that the preterrestrial composition of these carbon‐rich samples was less oxidized than previously measured. However, it is not clear yet whether or not the parent bodies of CI chondrites were as reduced as Ryugu. Finally, the high spatial resolution of NFS allows to disentangle the redox state and the crystal chemistry of iron accommodated in serpentine and smectite. The most likely polytype of serpentine is lizardite, containing <35% of Fe3+, a fraction of which being tetrahedrally coordinated. Smectite is more oxidized (Fe3+/Fetot > 65%) and mainly contains octahedral ferric iron. This finding implies that these clays formed from highly alkaline fluids and the spatial variability highlighted here may suggest a temporal evolution or a spatial variability of the nature of this fluid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report a Fourier transform infrared analysis of functional groups in insoluble organic matter (IOM) extracted from a series of 100–500 μm Ryugu grains collected during the two touchdowns of February 22 and July 11, 2019. IOM extracted from most of the samples is very similar to IOM in primitive CI, CM, and CR chondrites, and shows that the extent of thermal metamorphism in Ryugu regolith was, at best, very limited. One sample displays chemical signatures consistent with a very mild heating, likely due to asteroidal collision impacts. We also report a lower carbonyl abundance in Ryugu IOM samples compared to primitive chondrites, which could reflect the accretion of a less oxygenated precursor by Ryugu. The possible effects of hydrothermal alteration and terrestrial weathering are also discussed. Last, no firm conclusions could be drawn on the origin of the soluble outlier phases, observed along with IOM in this study and in the preliminary analysis of Ryugu samples. However, it is clear that the HF/HCl residues presented in this publication are a mix between IOM and the nitrogen‐rich outlier phase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]