We undertook a Mars rover-like deployment at a terrestrial analogue site consisting of active and relict perennial hypersaline springs at the East German Creek site in west-central Manitoba, Canada. This site serves as an analogue for possible long-lived springs on Mars. The deployment consisted of landing site-type investigations involving panoramic imagery from which regions of interest and targets of interest were selected for subsequent analysis by close-up imagery, and reflectance and Raman spectroscopy. These data were then used to prioritize samples for caching in the context of sample return. It was found that reflectance spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy were complementary because they generally identified different minerals and phases. Reflectance spectra of the surfaces of whole rocks often differed from bulk powders of the same samples. Powdering of samples generally reduced the spectral contributions of the surface and grain coatings, allowing the identity of the “bulk rock” to be better determined. Raman spectra of powdered bulk samples were generally featureless due to induced fluorescence. Both spectroscopic techniques were equally effective at detecting biology at the site (cyanobacteria/chlorophyll). Biological activity could also be inferred from the crenulated texture of cyanobacterial mats. Post-deployment analysis of the samples was used to confirm and expand mineral identities, largely by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and elemental analysis. Mineral abundances, presence of phases undetectable by spectroscopy and XRD, and the pervasive presence of Fe oxyhydroxides could be addressed by X-ray fluorescence and wet chemistry. The deployment also provided valuable operational experience for current and next-generation planetary researchers. Overall, the results suggest that multiple analytical techniques, being the XRD, XRF, reflectance and Raman spectroscopy are highly complementary in exploring and characterizing a biology-hosting hypersaline springs environment. This work provides a framework for the value of different instruments for exploring similar sites on Mars, as the instrument from our field campaign have equivalents on the Perseverance and Rosalind Franklin rovers.

中文翻译：

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对长期高盐泉环境的模拟漫游车探索：东德溪（加拿大MB）火星模拟站点

我们在加拿大马尼托巴省中西部东德溪遗址的一个由活跃和残留的常年高盐泉组成的陆地模拟地点进行了类似火星探测器的部署。这个地点可以类比火星上可能存在的长寿泉水。该部署包括涉及全景图像的着陆点类型调查，从中选择感兴趣区域和感兴趣目标，以便通过特写图像、反射率和拉曼光谱进行后续分析。然后，这些数据用于在样本返回的上下文中确定样本的优先级以进行缓存。研究发现，反射光谱和拉曼光谱是互补的，因为它们通常可以识别不同的矿物和物相。整个岩石表面的反射光谱通常与相同样品的散装粉末不同。样品的粉化通常会降低表面和颗粒涂层的光谱贡献，从而可以更好地确定“块状岩石”的身份。由于诱导荧光，粉末状散装样品的拉曼光谱通常没有特征。两种光谱技术在检测现场生物（蓝藻/叶绿素）方面同样有效。生物活性也可以从蓝藻垫的圆齿状纹理推断出来。样品的部署后分析主要通过 X 射线衍射 (XRD) 和元素分析来确认和扩展矿物特性。矿物丰度、光谱学和 XRD 无法检测到的相的存在以及普遍存在的氢氧化铁可以通过 X 射线荧光和湿化学来解决。此次部署还为当前和下一代行星研究人员提供了宝贵的操作经验。总体而言，结果表明 XRD、XRF、反射率和拉曼光谱等多种分析技术在探索和表征生物超盐泉水环境方面具有高度互补性。这项工作为探索火星上类似地点的不同仪器的价值提供了一个框架，因为我们的野外活动中的仪器在毅力号和罗莎琳德·富兰克林号火星车上有类似的仪器。