HR: 1400h
AN: B13B-11    [Abstracts]
TI: Preliminary Mineralogical and Geological Characterization of the Lost Hammer Perennial Spring, Axel Heiberg Island, Nunavut
AU: * Battler, M
EM: melissa.battler@gmail.com
AF: University of Western Ontario, Department of Earth Sciences, London, ON N6A 5B7, Canada
AU: Osinski, G R
EM: gosinski@uwo.ca
AF: University of Western Ontario, Department of Earth Sciences, London, ON N6A 5B7, Canada
AU: Banerjee, N
EM: neil.banerjee@uwo.ca
AF: University of Western Ontario, Department of Earth Sciences, London, ON N6A 5B7, Canada
AU: Izawa, M
EM: matthew.izawa@gmail.com
AF: University of Western Ontario, Department of Earth Sciences, London, ON N6A 5B7, Canada
AB: Understanding past potential hydrological processes is fundamental in the search for past life on Mars. Despite the lack of liquid water on the Martian surface today, there is evidence of past upwelling and evaporation of groundwater [e.g., 1]. Cold, saline, perennial spring systems, in which water would have been able to flow to the Martian surface year round, may be of particular interest. Analogous systems on Earth are pertinent to better understand how they might have functioned, and possibly preserved biosignatures, on Mars. Several sets of cold saline springs have been documented in the region surrounding the McGill Arctic Research Station on Axel Heiberg Island, NU; these represent the highest latitude perennial springs on Earth, flow through 600 m of permafrost, and are not associated with any volcanic heat sources. Primitive life thrives in these springs year round [2]. Here, first results of mineralogical analyses and geological field observations are presented for the Lost Hammer spring site. Spring deposits cover an area approximately 150 m x 30 m. The main vent is roughly 2.5 m tall and 3 m in diameter, and is covered in a layer several mm thick of a very fine, white, powdery mineral, overlying several cm of fine grey material. Preliminary XRD analysis has revealed the mineralogy of the white material to be thenardite (a dehydrated Na-sulphate; original mirabitite suspected) and halite, with trace amounts of quartz. The grey material is interpreted to be predominantly thenardite, mirabitite, and halite, with traces of other minerals. Hard white crusts on dried channel beds are thenardite and halite, and thicker crusts on pebbles are composed of halite and gypsum. Refs: [1] Allen, C.C, and Oehler, D.Z. 2008, A Case for Ancient Springs in Arabia Terra, Mars: Astrobiology, 8: 1093-1112. [2] Perreault, N.N. et al. 2007, Characterization of the Prokaryotic Diversity in Cold Saline Perennial Springs of the Canadian High Arctic: Appl. Environ. Microbiol., 73: 1532-1543.
DE: 0419 Biomineralization
DE: 0424 Biosignatures and proxies
DE: 5200 PLANETARY SCIENCES: ASTROBIOLOGY
DE: 5220 Hydrothermal systems and weathering on other planets
DE: 6225 Mars
SC: Geological Association of Canada [GA]
MN: 2009 Joint Assembly