Martian Meteorite ALH84001 Research Articles

Weak magnetism of Martian impact basins may reflect cooling in a reversing dynamo

Understanding the longevity of Mars’s dynamo is key to interpreting the planet’s atmospheric loss history and the properties of its deep interior. Satellite data showing magnetic lows above many large impact basins formed 4.1-3.7 billion years ago (Ga) have been interpreted as evidence that Mars’s dynamo terminated before 4.1 Ga—at least 0.4 Gy before intense late Noachian/early Hesperian hydrological activity. However, evidence for a longer-lived, reversing dynamo from young volcanics and the Martian meteorite ALH 84001 supports an alternative interpretation of Mars’s apparently demagnetized basins. To understand how a reversing dynamo would affect basin fields, here we model the cooling and magnetization of 200-2200 km diameter impact basins under a range of Earth-like reversal frequencies. We find that magnetic reversals efficiently reduce field strengths above large basins. In particular, if the magnetic properties of the Martian mantle are similar to most Martian meteorites and late remagnetization of the near surface is widespread, >90% of large ( > 800 km diameter) basins would appear demagnetized at spacecraft altitudes. This ultimately implies that Mars’s apparently demagnetized basins do not require an early dynamo cessation. A long-lived and reversing dynamo, unlike alternative scenarios, satisfies all available constraints on Mars’s magnetic history.

Edward R. D. Scott (1947–2021): A tribute to an exceptional scientist and wonderful man

Edward R. D. Scott (1947–2021): A tribute to an exceptional scientist and wonderful man

Uninhabitable and Potentially Habitable Environments on Mars: Evidence from Meteorite ALH 84001.

The martian meteorite ALH 84001 formed before ∼4.0 Ga, so it could have preserved information about habitability on early Mars and habitability since then. ALH 84001 is particularly important as it contains carbonate (and other) minerals that were deposited by liquid water, raising the chance that they may have formed in a habitable environment. Despite vigorous efforts from the scientific community, there is no accepted evidence that ALH 84001 contains traces or markers of ancient martian life-all the purported signs have been shown to be incorrect or ambiguous. However, the meteorite provides evidence for three distinct episodes of potentially habitable environments on early Mars. First is evidence that the meteorite's precursors interacted with clay-rich material, formed approximately at 4.2 Ga. Second is that igneous olivine crystals in ALH 84001 were partially dissolved and removed, presumably by liquid water. Third is, of course, the deposition of the carbonate globules, which occurred at ∼15-25°C and involved near-neutral to alkaline waters. The environments of olivine dissolution and carbonate deposition are not known precisely; hydrothermal and soil environments are current possibilities. By analogies with similar alteration minerals and sequences in the nakhlite martian meteorites and volcanic rocks from Spitzbergen (Norway), a hydrothermal environment is favored. As with the nakhlite alterations, those in ALH 84001 likely formed in a hydrothermal system related to a meteoroid impact event. Following deposition of the carbonates (at 3.95 Ga), ALH 84001 preserves no evidence of habitable environments, that is, interaction with water. The meteorite contains several materials (formed by impact shock at ∼3.9 Ga) that should have reacted readily with water to form hydrous silicates, but there is no evidence any formed.

Unknown caller: can we effectively manage the announcement of discovery of extraterrestrial life?

AbstractThe definitive discovery of another form of life from beyond Earth will answer one of our most fundamental questions: Are we alone in the Universe? This announcement will be the most significant in history. It will have impact on every facet of our lives and affect everyone on Earth. Ensuring the announcement is handled properly represents an opportunity to unify government, industrial, and scientific resources to work together on a global scale issue. The purpose of the present paper is to understand whether we have the overall strategy, management structures and process disciplines in place on a global scale to handle an announcement of this magnitude. The research methodology included review and analysis of peer-reviewed work on the topic, publications from appropriate scientific and policy organizations, and public statements from several acknowledged experts in the field of astrobiology and extraterrestrial communications. The 1996 case of the announcement of possible life from Martian meteorite ALH84001 was also analysed. The findings of the paper are multiple deficiencies exist in the ability to manage this problem globally in an integrated fashion across borders, institutional boundaries, and through the media. High-level recommendations are offered to address major identified gaps.

Carbonate formation events in ALH 84001 trace the evolution of the Martian atmosphere

Carbonate minerals provide critical information for defining atmosphere-hydrosphere interactions. Carbonate minerals in the Martian meteorite ALH 84001 have been dated to ∼ 3.9 Ga, and both C and O-triple isotopes can be used to decipher the planet's climate history. Here we report Δ(17)O, δ(18)O, and δ(13)C data of ALH 84001 of at least two varieties of carbonates, using a stepped acid dissolution technique paired with ion microprobe analyses to specifically target carbonates from distinct formation events and constrain the Martian atmosphere-hydrosphere-geosphere interactions and surficial aqueous alterations. These results indicate the presence of a Ca-rich carbonate phase enriched in (18)O that formed sometime after the primary aqueous event at 3.9 Ga. The phases showed excess (17)O (0.7‰) that captured the atmosphere-regolith chemical reservoir transfer, as well as CO2, O3, and H2O isotopic interactions at the time of formation of each specific carbonate. The carbon isotopes preserved in the Ca-rich carbonate phase indicate that the Noachian atmosphere of Mars was substantially depleted in (13)C compared with the modern atmosphere.

Size distributions of nanoparticles from magnetotactic bacteria as signatures of biologically controlled mineralization

This paper addresses the problem of magnetite nanoparticle size distributions in magnetotactic bacteria. The methods described in the paper can be used to determine the origin of natural magnetite nanoparticle samples. We analyzed 36 histograms related to bacterial, inorganic, and biomimetic nanoparticle sizes. Using statistical software we concluded that the size of the nanoparticles in cultured magnetotactic bacteria follows an extreme value distribution. Magnetite in uncultured samples can be treated as a two-component mixture containing extreme value and/or log-normally distributed nanoparticles. Analysis of the time-dependent formation of bacterial magnetite revealed that the magnetite size distribution transforms from the initial log-normal (young bacterial culture) through normal-like toward the extreme value distribution (evolved culture). It seems that at a certain moment during bacterial magnetite formation, the bacterial system starts to behave as a closed system. The closing of the system must be followed by another unknown process, because restriction of the nutrient supply into magnetosomes is insufficient for the generation of the extreme value distribution. Based on our analysis, approximately 50% of the magnetite particles in the martian meteorite ALH 84001 follow an extreme value distribution

ALH 84001中のリン酸塩鉱物におけるシングル・グレインU-Pb年代分析

ALH 84001中のリン酸塩鉱物におけるシングル・グレインU-Pb年代分析

Pre-4.0 billion year weathering on Mars constrained by Rb–Sr geochronology on meteorite ALH84001

The timing and nature of aqueous alteration of meteorite ALH84001 has important implications for the history of water on early Mars, the evolution of the Martian atmosphere, and the potential for early Mars habitability. Rubidium–Sr isotope analyses of mineral separates from igneous-textured and carbonate-rich aliquots of Martian meteorite ALH84001 constrain the age of alteration and the source of fluids. The carbonate-rich aliquot defines a precise Rb–Sr isochron between maskelynite, orthopyroxene, and chromite of 3952±22Ma, and this is interpreted to represent a shock resetting event that was broadly coeval with carbonate precipitation. Carbonate, bulk rock, and multi-mineral separates all have high 87Sr/86Sr ratios that can only have been produced by alteration via a fluid derived through interaction with high Rb/Sr phyllosilicates that were produced prior to 3950Ma. These data confirm that the source of Sr in the fluids was previously altered crustal rock, consistent with fluids that underwent low-temperature water–rock interaction (Eiler et al., 2002; Halvey et al., 2011). These results therefore provide evidence for wet, clay-rich conditions on the surface of Mars prior to ∼4.2Ga.

Geochemistry of Carbonates on Mars: Implications for Climate History and Nature of Aqueous Environments

Ongoing research on martian meteorites and a new set of observations of carbonate minerals provided by an unprecedented series of robotic missions to Mars in the past 15 years help define new constraints on the history of martian climate with important crosscutting themes including: the CO2 budget of Mars, the role of Mg-, Fe-rich fluids on Mars, and the interplay between carbonate formation and acidity.Carbonate minerals have now been identified in a wide range of localities on Mars as well as in several martian meteorites. The martian meteorites contain carbonates in low abundances (<1 vol.%) and with a wide range of chemistries. Carbonates have also been identified by remote sensing instruments on orbiting spacecraft in several surface locations as well as in low concentrations (2–5 wt.%) in the martian dust. The Spirit rover also identified an outcrop with 16 to 34 wt.% carbonate material in the Columbia Hills of Gusev Crater that strongly resembled the composition of carbonate found in martian meteorite ALH 84001. Finally, the Phoenix lander identified concentrations of 3–6 wt.% carbonate in the soils of the northern plains.The carbonates discovered to date do not clearly indicate the past presence of a dense Noachian atmosphere, but instead suggest localized hydrothermal aqueous environments with limited water availability that existed primarily in the early to mid-Noachian followed by low levels of carbonate formation from thin films of transient water from the late Noachian to the present. The prevalence of carbonate along with evidence for active carbonate precipitation suggests that a global acidic chemistry is unlikely and a more complex relationship between acidity and carbonate formation is present.

Biomimetic Properties of Minerals and the Search for Life in the Martian Meteorite ALH84001

The existence of extraterrestrial life was heralded by controversial claims made in 1996 that the Martian meteorite ALH84001 harbored relics of ancient microorganisms. We review here the accumulated evidence for and against past extraterrestrial life in this Martian meteorite. The main pro-life arguments—the presence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, magnetite crystals, carbonate globules, and structures resembling terrestrial life-forms known as nanobacteria—can be deemed ambiguous at best. Although these criteria are compatible with living processes, each one of them can be explained by nonliving chemical processes. By undergoing amorphous-to-crystalline transformations and binding to multiple substrates, including other ions and simple organic compounds, minerals—especially those containing carbonate—have been shown to display biomimetic properties, producing forms that resemble bacteria. This simple and down-to-earth explanation can account fully for the existence of mineral entities resembling putative nano- and microorganisms that have been described not only in the ALH84001 meteorite but also in the human body.

Trapped Ar isotopes in meteorite ALH 84001 indicate Mars did not have a thick ancient atmosphere

Water is not currently stable in liquid form on the martian surface due to the present mean atmospheric pressure of ∼7mbar and mean global temperature of ∼220K. However, geomorphic features and hydrated mineral assemblages suggest that Mars’ climate was once warmer and liquid water flowed on the surface. These observations may indicate a substantially more massive atmosphere in the past, but there have been few observational constraints on paleoatmospheric pressures. Here we show how the 40Ar/36Ar ratios of trapped gases within martian meteorite ALH 84001 constrain paleoatmospheric pressure on Mars during the Noachian era [∼4.56–3.8billion years (Ga)]. Our model indicates that atmospheric pressures did not exceed ∼1.5bar during the first 400million years (Ma) of the Noachian era, and were <400mbar by 4.16Ga. Such pressures of CO2 are only sufficient to stabilize liquid water on Mars’ surface at low latitudes during seasonally warm periods. Other greenhouse gases like SO2 and water vapor may have played an important role in intermittently stabilizing liquid water at higher latitudes following major volcanic eruptions or impact events.

Signatures in magnetites formed by (Ca,Mg,Fe)CO3 thermal decomposition: Terrestrial and extraterrestrial implications

It has never been demonstrated whether magnetite synthesized through the heat-dependent decomposition of carbonate precursors retains the chemical and structural features of the carbonates. In this study, synthetic (Ca,Mg,Fe)CO3 was thermally decomposed by heating from 25 to 700°C under 1atm CO2, and by in situ exposure under vacuum to the electron beam of a transmission electron microscope. In both cases, the decomposition of the carbonate was topotactic and resulted in porous pseudomorphs composed of oriented aggregates of magnetite nanocrystals. Both calcium and magnesium were incorporated into nanophase magnetite, forming (Ca,Mg)-magnetites and (Ca,Mg)-ferrites when these elements were present in the parent material, thus preserving the chemical signature of the precursor. These results show that magnetites synthesized in this way acquire a chemical and structural inheritance from their carbonate precursor that indicates how they were produced. These results are not only important in the determination of the origin of chemically-impure, oriented nanophase magnetite crystals in general, but they also provide important insights into the origin of the large, euhedral, chemically-pure, [111]-elongated magnetites found within Ca-, Mg- and Fe-rich carbonates of the Martian meteorite ALH84001. Based on our experimental results, the chemically-pure magnetites within ALH84001 cannot be genetically related to the Ca-, Mg- and Fe-rich carbonate matrix within which they are embedded, and an alternative explanation for their occurrence is warranted.

Decreasing CO2partial pressure triggered Mg-Fe-Ca carbonate formation in ancient Martian crust preserved in the ALH84001 Meteorite

We retrace hydrogeochemical processes leading to the formation of Mg–Fe–Ca carbonate concretions (first distinct carbonate population, FDCP) in Martian meteorite ALH84001 by generic hydrogeochemical equilibrium and mass transfer modeling. Our simple conceptual models assume isochemical equilibration of orthopyroxenite minerals with pure water at varying water-to-rock ratios, temperatures and CO2 partial pressures. Modeled scenarios include CO2 partial pressures ranging from 10.1325 to 0.0001 MPa at water-to-rock ratios between 4380 and 43.8 mol mol−1 and different temperatures (278, 303 and 348 K) and enable the precipitation of Mg–Fe–Ca solid solution carbonate. Modeled range and trend of carbonate compositional variation from magnesio-siderite (core) to magnesite (rim), and the precipitation of amorphous SiO2 and magnetite coupled to magnesite-rich carbonate are similar to measured compositional variation. The results of this study suggest that the early Martian subsurface had been exposed to a dynamic gas pressure regime with decreasing CO2 partial pressure at low temperatures (approximately 1.0133 to 0.0001 MPa at 278 K or 6 to 0.0001 MPa at 303 K). Moderate water-to-rock ratios of ca. 438 mol mol−1 and isochemical weathering of orthopyroxenite are additional key prerequisites for the formation of secondary phase assemblages similar to ALH84001’s ‘FDCP’. Outbursts of water and CO2(g) from confined ground water in fractured orthopyroxenite rocks below an unstable CO2 hydrate-containing cryosphere provide adequate environments on the early Martian surface.

Magnetite as a prokaryotic biomarker: A review

Over the years, nanometer‐sized magnetite (Fe3O4) crystals have been recovered from many modern and ancient environments including sediments and soils and even meteorites. In some cases these crystals have been used as “magnetofossils” for evidence of the past presence of specific microbes. Magnetite nanocrystals can be formed by a number of different biological and inorganic mechanisms resulting in crystals with different physical and magnetic characteristics. Prokaryotes (bacteria) biomineralize magnetite through two methods that differ mechanistically, including: biologically induced mineralization (BIM) and biologically controlled mineralization (BCM). Magnetite nanocrystals produced by BIM are known to be synthesized by the dissimilatory iron‐reducing bacteria, are deposited external to the cell, and generally are physically indistinguishable from magnetite particles formed inorganically. BCM magnetites, in contrast, are synthesized by the magnetotactic bacteria and some higher organisms and are precipitated intracellularly as membrane‐bounded structures called magnetosomes. These magnetites appear to have unique crystal morphologies and a narrow size range leading to their original use as magnetofossils. Because of the discovery of nanometer‐sized crystals of magnetite in the Martian meteorite ALH84001, the use of these criteria for the determination of whether magnetite crystals could constitute a prokaryotic biomarker was questioned. Thus, there is currently great debate over what criteria to use in the determination of whether specific magnetite crystals are biogenic or not. In the last decade, additional criteria have been established (e.g., the Magnetite Assay for Biogenicity), and new tools and technologies have been developed to determine the origin of specific types of magnetite crystals.

Origins of magnetite nanocrystals in Martian meteorite ALH84001

The Martian meteorite ALH84001 preserves evidence of interaction with aqueous fluids while on Mars in the form of microscopic carbonate disks. These carbonate disks are believed to have precipitated 3.9 Ga ago at beginning of the Noachian epoch on Mars during which both the oldest extant Martian surfaces were formed, and perhaps the earliest global oceans. Intimately associated within and throughout these carbonate disks are nanocrystal magnetites (Fe 3O 4) with unusual chemical and physical properties, whose origins have become the source of considerable debate. One group of hypotheses argues that these magnetites are the product of partial thermal decomposition of the host carbonate. Alternatively, the origins of magnetite and carbonate may be unrelated; that is, from the perspective of the carbonate the magnetite is allochthonous. For example, the magnetites might have already been present in the aqueous fluids from which the carbonates were believed to have been deposited. We have sought to resolve between these hypotheses through the detailed characterization of the compositional and structural relationships of the carbonate disks and associated magnetites with the orthopyroxene matrix in which they are embedded. Extensive use of focused ion beam milling techniques has been utilized for sample preparation. We then compared our observations with those from experimental thermal decomposition studies of sideritic carbonates under a range of plausible geological heating scenarios. We conclude that the vast majority of the nanocrystal magnetites present in the carbonate disks could not have formed by any of the currently proposed thermal decomposition scenarios. Instead, we find there is considerable evidence in support of an alternative allochthonous origin for the magnetite unrelated to any shock or thermal processing of the carbonates.

Paleointensity of the ancient Martian magnetic field

Mars today has no core dynamo magnetic field. However, the discovery of remanent magnetization in Martian meteorites and intense crustal magnetization suggests that Mars once had a global field. Here we present high resolution maps of the magnetic field of Martian meteorite ALH 84001. These maps are the most sensitive yet quantitative study of natural remanent magnetization (with resolved anomalies as weak as 1 × 10−14 Am2). ALH 84001 likely contains a 4 billion year old (Ga) thermoremanence partially overprinted by one or more poorly understood secondary components. Our data suggest that the paleointensity of the local paleofield was within an order of magnitude of that of the present‐day Earth. If this field were global in extent, it should have played a key role in Martian atmospheric and climatic evolution. However, it is still too weak to easily explain the intensity of Martian crustal paleomagnetic anomalies.

The case for life on Mars

AbstractThere have been several attempts to answer the question of whether there is, or has ever been, life on Mars. The boldest attempt was the only ever life detection experiment conducted on another planet: the Viking mission. The mission was a great success, but it failed to provide a clear answer to the question of life on Mars. More than 30 years after the Viking mission our understanding of the history and evolution of Mars has increased vastly to reveal a wetter Martian past and the occurrence of diverse environments that could have supported microbial life similar to that on Earth for extended periods of time. The discovery of Terran extremophilic microorganisms, adapted to environments previously though to be prohibitive for life, has greatly expanded the limits of habitability in our Solar System, and has opened new avenues for the search of life on Mars. Remnants of a possible early biosphere may be found in the Martian meteorite ALH84001. This claim is based on a collection of facts and observations consistent with biogenic origins, but individual links in the collective chain of evidence remain controversial. Recent evidence for contemporary liquid water on Mars and the detection of methane in the Martian atmosphere further enhance the case for life on Mars. We argue that, given the cumulative evidence provided, life has and is likely to exist on Mars, and we have already found evidence of it. However, to obtain a compelling certainty a new mission is needed, one which is devoted to the detection of life on Mars.

Search for organic molecules at the Mars surface: The “Martian Organic Material Irradiation and Evolution” (MOMIE) project

The life on Mars remains an open question because of the lack of proof of its past emergence and its current presence. The only indices of a potential Martian life were provided by the Viking Landers, and the study of the Martian meteorite ALH84001 discovered in the Antarctic. In the two case, the results of experiments could be explained either by the presence of life forms or by abiotic processes. The recent data of Mars Express orbiter and Mars Exploration Rovers show different proofs of a past environment favourable for life. Among the targets we seek, the organic molecules are primordial because they are necessary to the origin of life. A key question is to know if they are present, in which concentration and under which form. Within the framework of a search for organic, we are developing an experimental setup simulating as close as possible the environmental conditions of Mars surface in order to determine how organic species evolve. We present here the first step of the development of this experiment which focuses on the study of the impact of the solar UV radiations reaching the Mars surface on glycine. First results show that glycine does not resist if directly exposed to UV radiations.

New Signs of Ancient Life in Another Martian Meteorite?

LUNAR AND PLANETARY SCIENCE CONFERENCEHOUSTON, TEXAS-- At the Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, held here from 13 to 17 March, much the same group that 10 years ago found signs of life in martian meteorite ALH84001 presented new evidence of organic remains in another martian meteorite, Nakhla. And they're not alone. ([Read more][1].) [1]: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/311/5769/1858a

γ-ray irradiation in the early Solar System and the conundrum of the 176Lu decay constant

When recent geological calibrations of the 176Lu decay constant are used, the 176Lu– 176Hf ages of chondrites are consistently 4% too old (∼4.75 Ga). Here, we suggest that this discrepancy reflects the photoexcitation of the long-lived 176Lu ground state to the short-lived isomeric state ( T 1/2 = 3.7 h) by γ-rays irradiating early condensates. Irradiation may have been of solar origin and taking place at the inner edge of the nebular disk. Alternatively, the source of γ-rays could have been one or more supernova(e) exploding in the vicinity of the solar nebula. Such photoexcitation has been experimentally observed, but requires γ-ray photons that have energies in excess of 838 keV. At this stage, we cannot assess whether the Hf isotope composition of the Bulk Silicate Earth differs from that of chondrites, eucrites, and the 4.56 Ga old Martian meteorite ALH84001, and therefore, whether the precursor material for these different planetary bodies received comparable fluences of γ-rays.