Raman Characterization of the CanMars Rover Field Campaign Samples Using the Raman Laser Spectrometer ExoMars Simulator: Implications for Mars and Planetary Exploration.

The Mars 2020 Perseverance rover landed on February 18, 2021, and has started ground operations. The ExoMars rover will touch down on June 10, 2023. Perseverance will be the first-ever Mars sample caching mission-a first step in sample return to Earth.

UV Time-Resolved Laser-Induced Fluorescence Spectroscopy of Amino Acids Found in Meteorites: Implications for Space Science and Exploration.

Laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopy is a useful laboratory and technique for planetary exploration, with applications in biosignature detection and the search for life on Mars. However, little work has been completed on the utility of fluorescence spectroscopy techniques on asteroid relevant material. In preparation for asteroid sample return missions such as NASA's OSIRIS-REx and JAXA's Hayabusa2, we conducted UV time resolved laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopy (TR-LIF) analysis of 10 amino acids, all of which have been found in the carbonaceous meteorites Murchison and Allende.

Combined Spectroscopic Analysis of Terrestrial Analogs from a Simulated Astronaut Mission Using the Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) Raman Sensor: Implications for Mars.

One of the primary objectives of planetary exploration is the search for signs of life (past, present, or future). Formulating an understanding of the geochemical processes on planetary bodies may allow us to define the precursors for biological processes, thus providing insight into the evolution of past life on Earth and other planets, and perhaps a projection into future biological processes. Several techniques have emerged for detecting biomarker signals on an atomic or molecular level, including laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), Raman spectroscopy, laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) spectroscopy, and attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared (ATR FT-IR) spectroscopy, each of which addresses complementary aspects of the elemental composition, mineralogy, and organic characterization of a sample.

The AMADEE-18 Mars Analog Expedition in the Dhofar Region of Oman.

From February 1 to 28, 2018, the Austrian Space Forum, in cooperation with the Oman Astronomical Society and research teams from 25 nations, conducted the AMADEE-18 mission, a human-robotic Mars expedition simulation in the Dhofar region in the Sultanate of Oman. A carefully selected field crew, supported by a Mission Support Center in Innsbruck, Austria, conducted 19 experiments relevant to astrobiology, engineering disciplines, geoscience, operations research, and human factors. This expedition was the 12th in a series of analog missions that emulate selected aspects of the science expected for a human Mars mission, including the characterization of the (paleo)geological environment, human factors studies, and the search for biomarkers.

Laboratory Analysis of Returned Samples from the AMADEE-18 Mars Analog Mission.

Between February 1 and 28, 2018, the Austrian Space Forum, in cooperation with the Oman Astronomical Society and research teams from 25 nations, conducted the AMADEE-18 mission, a human-robotic Mars expedition simulation in the Dhofar region in the Sultanate of Oman. As a part of the AMADEE-18 simulated Mars human exploration mission, the Remote Science Support team performed analyses of the Dhofar area (Oman) in an effort to characterize the region as a potential Mars analog site. The main motivation of this research was to study and register selected samples collected by analog astronauts during the AMADEE-18 mission with laboratory analytical methods and techniques comparable with those that are likely to be used on Mars in the future.

Clinical anisotropy: A case for shared decision making in the age of too much data and patient dis-integration.

Today, in the age of big data, we are more capable than ever before. But even having the world at our disposal with naught but the touch of a button, we find ourselves exceedingly vulnerable in the patient chair. With insurmountable amounts of knowledge being published and disseminated around the world, how can clinicians keep up and what can be done about it? And sitting in the patient chair, bewildered by the ever-changing landscape of medicine at the blink of an eye, how can we, as patients, ever hope to be part of the conversations revolving around our own health? In this work, we explore the present-day problems of big data in the clinical context, how failing to integrate patients can result in detrimental outcomes, and what shared decision making can do about it.