This is a $104,931.80 training grant awarded by NASA to the University of Colorado to conduct research on the behavior of perchlorate salts and their impact on the formation of liquid water under Martian environmental conditions. The study aims to better understand the phase transition of perchlorate solutions from aqueous to ice states, which has implications for astrobiology, future space exploration, and geological features on Mars. The research involves using a Raman microscope to observe...
This is a grant awarded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Shared Services Center to the University of Colorado, a U.S. state government entity and institution of higher learning. The $224,725.54 grant funds a research project to study the aqueous stratigraphy and alteration history of the Noachis Terra region on Mars. The research aims to characterize the composition, thermophysical properties, and geomorphology of aqueous materials and adjacent terrain in this area,...
This is a $218,133.46 grant awarded by NASA to the Regents of the University of Colorado (doing business as the University of Colorado) to conduct research on geochemical alteration processes on Mars. The research aims to determine which alteration processes and conditions are most compatible with the observed geochemical trends in sulfur-enriched rocks at the Meridiani and Gusev landing sites, and to incorporate this information into interpretations of the geologic history of those sites. The...
This is a $105,578.09 grant awarded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to The Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri on September 1, 2019. The grant is for research to enhance the interpretation of results from past, ongoing, and future planned missions on Mars. The research will focus on oxychlorine detection by rover and orbital measurements to understand the widespread presence of chlorate and perchlorate on the Martian surface. This grant does not have a...
This is a $82,827.46 grant award from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to the Space Science Institute (SSI), a nonprofit research organization in Boulder, Colorado. The grant will fund a continuation of spectroscopic investigations by Dr. Osterloo, a research scientist at SSI, to further understand the composition and formation of chloride salt deposits on the surface of Mars. The work will build on previous efforts, utilizing the same spectral library and methods to...
This is a $396,691 grant awarded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to the University of Chicago, a private, non-profit research university. The grant is for research to characterize the rate and mechanisms of photo-oxidation of iron under ultraviolet (UV) radiation conditions relevant to the Martian surface environment. Specifically, the research aims to determine the quantum yield (efficiency) of iron oxidation by UV photons and how it varies with iron speciation and...
This is a $550,080.00 grant awarded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to the University of Washington (UW) to conduct research on the potential formation of near-surface liquid water on Mars. The research will involve a combination of field work in the Antarctic Dry Valleys, a Mars analog environment, and theoretical modeling of brine and vapor transport in permafrost soils. The goal is to better understand the chemical, mineralogical, and isotopic composition of...
This is a $243,600.00 grant awarded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Shared Services Center to Lowell Observatory, a private non-profit research institution in Flagstaff, Arizona. The grant is for a research project to investigate the presence and distribution of chlorine salts on the surface of Mars using data from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The goal is to understand the brine chemistry of lakes and playas on ancient Mars, as well as any modern transient water...
This is a $374,955 grant awarded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to the University of Wyoming to execute a balanced science program based on guidance from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, administration priorities, and direction from Congress. The grant aims to advance scientific discovery and support NASA's exploration initiatives, focusing on research of, on, and from the Moon, lunar orbit, Mars, and beyond. The university will...
This is a $534,853.12 research grant awarded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM), a public research university and part of the University of Wisconsin System. The objective of the proposed research is to characterize the life-sustaining redox gradients developed in Icelandic volcanic hydrothermal environments and determine how these are reflected in the geochemical and mineralogical patterns of associated alteration of...
This is a $447,842.50 grant awarded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to the University of Wyoming for research on the photoelectrochemical production of perchlorate on the surface of Mars. The research aims to understand the processes by which semiconducting minerals on Mars can produce perchlorate through reactions driven by ultraviolet radiation, as an alternative to the previously proposed atmospheric mechanism. The study will examine reaction pathways, intermediates, and rates under Martian environmental conditions using a specially constructed Mars simulation chamber. The research may also provide insights into the production of other oxidizing species and water decomposition on the Martian surface. This grant does not have a set-aside designation and is part of NASA's broader program on understanding the Martian surface chemistry and environment.