Understanding the distribution of trace organic material in a rocky environment is a key to constraining the material requirements for sustaining microbial life. We used an ultraviolet laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) spectroscopy instrument to characterize the distribution of organic biosignatures in basalts collected from two Mars-analog environments. We correlated the fluorescence results with alteration-related sample properties. These samples exhibit a range of alteration conditions found in the volcanic environments of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park, Hawai'i (HI), and Craters of the Moon National Monument, Idaho (ID), including fumarolic systems. LIF mapping of the sample surfaces and interiors showed a heterogeneous distribution of areas of highly fluorescent material (point[s]-of-interest [POIs])—with fluorescence characteristics indicative of organic material. Results suggest that POIs are associated with secondary alteration mineral deposits in the rock's vesicles, including zeolites and calcite. Scanning electron microscopy with electron-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy was used to characterize the mineralogy present at POIs and support the evidence of carbon-bearing material. Overall, samples collected proximate to active or relict meteoric fumaroles from Hawai'i were shown to contain evidence for organic deposits. This suggests that these minerals are measurable spectroscopic targets that may be used to inform sample-site selection for astrobiology research.

中文翻译：

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用紫外激光诱导荧光光谱法测定的火星模拟火山岩中的有机物质分布

了解岩石环境中痕量有机材料的分布是限制维持微生物生命所需材料的关键。我们使用紫外激光诱导荧光 (LIF) 光谱仪来表征从两个火星模拟环境收集的玄武岩中有机生物特征的分布。我们将荧光结果与改变相关的样品特性相关联。这些样本展示了在夏威夷火山国家公园 (HI) 和月球火山口国家纪念碑 (ID) 的火山环境中发现的一系列变化条件，包括喷气系统。样品表面和内部的 LIF 映射显示高荧光材料（感兴趣点 [POI]）区域的异质分布 - 具有指示有机材料的荧光特性。结果表明，POI 与岩石囊泡中的次生蚀变矿床有关，包括沸石和方解石。具有电子色散 X 射线光谱的扫描电子显微镜用于表征 POI 中存在的矿物学并支持含碳材料的证据。总体而言，在夏威夷活动或残留的大气喷气孔附近收集的样本显示包含有机沉积物的证据。这表明这些矿物是可测量的光谱目标，可用于为天体生物学研究的样本点选择提供信息。