Preliminary Planning for Mars Sample Return (MSR) Curation Activities in a Sample Receiving Facility (SRF)

Abstract

The Mars Sample Return Planning Group 2 (MSPG2) was tasked with identifying the steps that encompass all the curation activities that would happen within the MSR Sample Receiving Facility (SRF) and any anticipated curation-related requirements. An area of specific interest is the necessary analytical instrumentation. The SRF would be a Biosafety Level-4 facility where the returned MSR flight hardware would be opened, the sample tubes accessed, and the martian sample material extracted from the tubes. Characterization of the essential attributes of each sample would be required to provide enough information to prepare a sample catalog used in guiding the preparation of sample-related proposals by the world's research community and informing decisions by the sample allocation committee. The sample catalog would be populated with data and information generated during all phases of activity, including data derived concurrent with Mars 2020 sample-collecting rover activity, sample transport to Earth, and initial sample characterization within the SRF. We conclude that initial sample characterization can best be planned as a set of three sequential phases, which we have called Pre-Basic Characterization (Pre-BC), Basic Characterization (BC), and Preliminary Examination (PE), each of which requires a certain amount of instrumentation. Data on specific samples and subsamples obtained during sample safety assessments and time-sensitive scientific investigations would also be added to the catalog. There are several areas where future work would be beneficial to prepare for the receipt of samples, which would include the design of a sample tube isolation chamber and a strategy for opening the sample tubes and removing dust from the tube exteriors. Executive Summary All material collected from Mars (gases, dust, rock, regolith) would need to be carefully handled, stored, and analyzed following Earth return to minimize the alteration or contamination that could occur on Earth and maximize the scientific information that can be attained from the samples now and into the future. A Sample Receiving Facility (SRF) is where the Earth Entry System (EES) would be opened and the sample tubes opened and processed after they land on Earth. Samples should be accessible for research in biocontainment for time-sensitive studies and eventually, when deemed safe for release after sterilization or biohazard assessment, should be transferred out of biocontainment for allocation to scientific investigators in outside laboratories. There are two main mechanisms for allocation of samples outside the SRF: 1) Wait until the implementation of the Sample Safety Assessment Protocol (Planetary Protection) results concludes that the samples are non-hazardous, 2) Render splits of the samples non-hazardous by means of sterilization. To make these samples accessible, a series of observations and analytical measurements need to be completed to produce a sample catalog for the scientific community. Specialist members of the Mars Sample Return Planning Group Phase 2 (MSPG2), referred to here as the Curation Focus Group, have identified four curation goals that encompass all of the activities within the SRF: Documentation of the state of the sample tubes and their contents prior to opening, Inventory and tracking of the mass of each sample, Preliminary assessment of lithology and any macroscopic forms of heterogeneity (on all the samples, non-invasive, in pristine isolators), Sufficient characterization of the essential attributes of each sample to prepare a sample catalog and respond to requests by the sample allocation committee (partial samples, invasive, outside of pristine isolators). The sample catalog will provide data for the scientific community to make informed requests for samples for scientific investigations and for the approval of allocations of appropriate samples to satisfy these requests. The sample catalog would be populated with data and information generated during all phases of activity, including data derived from the landed Mars 2020 mission, during sample collection and transport to Earth, and reception within the Sample Receiving Facility. Data on specific samples and subsamples would also be generated during curation activities carried out within the Sample Receiving Facility and during sample safety assessments, time-sensitive studies, and a series of initial sample characterization steps we refer to as Pre-Basic Characterization (Pre-BC), Basic Characterization (BC), and Preliminary Examination (PE) phases. A significant portion of the Curation Focus Group's efforts was to determine which instrumentation would be required to produce a sample catalog for the scientific community and how and when certain instrumentation should be used. The goal is to provide enough information for the PIs to request material for their studies but to avoid facilitating studies that target scientific research that is better left to peer-reviewed competitive processes. We reviewed the proposed scientific objectives of the International MSR Objectives and Samples Team (iMOST) (Beaty et al., 2019 ) to make sure that the instrumentation suggested is sufficient to cover these key science planning questions ( Table 1 ; Section S-6). It was determined that for Pre-Basic Characterization, two instruments are required, a Magnetometer (see Section S-1.1) and an X-ray Computed Tomography scanner (XCT see Section S-1.2). For Basic Characterization, there are four instruments that are considered necessary, which are analytical balance(s) (see Section S-2.1), binocular microscopes (see Section S-2.2), and multispectral imaging and hyperspectral scanning systems (see Section S-2.3). Then in Preliminary Examination, there is a set of instruments that should be available for generating more detailed information for the sample catalog. These are a Variable Pressure-Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope (VP-FE-SEM see Section S-3.1), Confocal Raman spectrometer (see Section S-3.2), Deep UV Fluorescence (see Section S-3.3), a Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer (see Section S-3.4), a Micro X-ray Diffractometer (see Section S-3.5), X-ray Fluorescence Spectrometer (see Section S-3.6), and Petrographic and Stereo Microscope (see Section S-3.7). All instruments are summarized in Table 1 . Finally, our Curation Focus Group has outlined several specific findings for sample curation within the SRF to complete the sample catalog prior to sample distribution and made several recommendations for future work (summarized in Section 8.1) to build upon the efforts that generated this report. List of Findings MAJOR FINDING C-1: The initial sample characterization in the Sample Receiving Facility of the MSR samples can be broken down into three stages for simplicity as follows: Pre-Basic Characterization (Pre-BC), Basic Characterization (BC), and Preliminary Examination (PE). While the whole collection would be assessed through Pre-BC and BC, only subsets of samples would be used during the PE phase. FINDING C-2: Immediately after Earth landing, the spacecraft would be recovered and placed in a container designed to control and stabilize its physical conditions. The optimum temperature (T optimum ) of the sample tubes during transport to the Sample Receiving Facility (SRF) should be the same as the operating temperature of the SRF to avoid unnecessary temperature shock. FINDING C-3: The Sample Receiving Facility (SRF) should operate at room temperature (∼15–25°C), and the samples should be held at this temperature through all steps of initial sample characterization, with the option for cold storage of subsamples available in the SRF when needed. MAJOR FINDING C-4: Measurements on all the sample tubes before they are opened are essential to conduct as the samples could be compromised upon opening of the tubes. This step is called Pre-Basic Characterization (Pre-BC). These are measurements that would inform how the tubes are opened, processed, and subsampled during Basic Characterization (BC). MAJOR FINDING C-5: Careful collec

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