Mars, Minerals, Microbiology Oh My!

Abstract

The discovery of authigenic minerals on Mars has been fundamental in the research of habitable environments across the planets. Exploring, Mapping, and Data Management Integration of Habitable Environments in Astrobiology discusses this discovery. These authigenic minerals hold biosignatures, which could show the presence of microbial life. As well as four important authigenic mineral systems that can indicate the potential for water environments. These systems include, iron and manganese oxides, sulfates, clays, and carbonates, each chosen because of their affinity to hold biosignatures in Earth conditions. The systematic approaches regarding these findings include a macro and a microscale system. These systems include LIDAR, AVIRIS-C, IR mapping, micro reflectance infrared spectroscopy. The future of habitable environments is still largely unknown, but advancements are still being made. The idea of a collective database is an option but has not been pursued in any great capacity.