A goal of this research is to develop conceptual designs for instrumentation to perform in situ measurements of the Martian soil in order to determine the existence and nature of any reactive chemicals. Our approach involves assessment and critical review of the Viking biology results which indicated the presence of a soil oxidant, an investigation of the possible application of standard soil science techniques to the analysis of Martian soil, and a preliminary consideration of non-standard methods that may be necessary for use in the highly oxidizing Martian soil. Based on our preliminary analysis, we have developed strawman concepts for standard soil analysis on Mars, including pH, suitable for use on a Mars rover mission. In addition, we have devised a method for the determination of the possible strong oxidants on Mars.


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    Title :

    Conceptual designs for in situ analysis of Mars soil


    Contributors:
    Mckay, C. P. (author) / Zent, A. P. (author) / Hartman, H. (author)


    Publication date :

    1991-10-01


    Type of media :

    Conference paper


    Type of material :

    No indication


    Language :

    English


    Keywords :


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