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NASA NTRS1980

Recent depositional history of Apollo 16 and 17 cores

Measurements of Al-26 and Mn-53 in the Apollo 17 drive tube 76001 show a clear integral excess of activity above expected production down to a depth of at least 9 gm/sq cm. This excess is interpreted as a continuous accretion of highly irradiated surface material slowly transported downslope by impact or other processes at a buildup rate of 1.5 cm/m.y. This drive tube, 76001, was collected near a change in slope on the North Massif. Integral excesses have also been observed in other Apollo 16 and 17 cores. Evidence in the Al-26 and Mn-53 record for continuous accretion is shown for Apollo 16 cores 60007 and 60010 and the Apollo 16 deep drill string 70009-70001. This evaluation shows that accretion at specific sites, either through continuous downslope movement or regolith material on the moon, or simply through small impact redistribution, is common on both small and large scales.

Evans, J. C.↗

NASA NTRS1982

Studies of lunar regolith dynamics using measurements of cosmogenic radionuclides in lunar rocks, soils and cores

The present investigation is concerned with two types of measurements. The first deals with the use of Al-26 to define regolith gardening processes which have occurred in the upper portion of the lunar cores that were collected both by the deep drilling and drive tube operations. The second portion of the study involves the use of Mn-53 and Al-26 concentrations to determine the surface exposure histories of individual rocks over the past ten million years. It is found that during the past two million years, 15011 has had a history of simple gardening with an accumulation rate of 2 cm/m.y. The Apollo 15 Station 2 boulder appears to have been in place for about five million years. The 'shadowed' soil (75237) shows a shielding effect of about 40%. The Apollo 16 Station 9 boulder appears to have been in place for about four million years and thus is apparently not related to the South Ray Crater event.

Fruchter, J. S.↗

NASA NTRS1986

Lunar nitrogen: Secular variation or mixing?

The two current models to explain the nearly 40% variation of the lunar nitrogen isotopic composition are: (1) secular variation of solar wind nitrogen; and (2) a two component mixing model having a constant, heavy solar wind admixed with varying amounts of indigenous light lunar N (LLN). Both models are needed to explain the step pyrolysis extraction profile. The secular variation model proposes that the low temperature release is modern day solar wind implanted into grain surfaces, the 900 C to 1100 C release is from grain surfaces which were once exposed to the ancient solar wind but which are now trapped inside agglutinates, and the >1100 C release as spallogenic N produced by cosmic rays. The mixing model ascribes the components to solar wind, indigenous lunar N and spallogenic N respectively. An extension of either interpretation is that the light N seen in lunar breccias or deep drill cores represent conditions when more N-14 was available to the lunar surface.

Norris, S. J.↗

NASA NTRS1987

The Martian sedimentary record

The differences between the surface geology of Mars and earth are discussed. Sedimentary processes and fluvial systems on Mars are examined. Surface mapping reveals the more recent depostional patterns. In future missions, radar sounding, active seismic systems, and on site deep drilling may be required to fully document the depositional history. For the present, identification of sedimentary layers must rest on localities of tectonic or erosional windows, detection of buried surfaces by indirect methods, and deposition or off lap patterns of distribution.

Dehon, R. A.↗

NASA NTRS1989

Rod gripper, changer, and storage system

A rod changer and storage design is presented for the lunar deep drill apparatus to be used in conjunction with the Skitter walking platform. The design must take into account all of the lunar environment and working conditions. Some of these are: (1) the moon has one sixth the gravity of earth; (2) temperature gradients can range from about -170 to 265 C; (3) because of the high transportation costs, the design must be as light as possible; and (4) the process must be remotely operated (from earth or satellite) and must be automated. Because of Skitter's multiple degree of freedom movement, the design will utilize Skitter's movement to locate an implement and transport it from the rack to the drill string. The implement will be gripped by a thumb and two finger device, identified through an electronic sensing device on the thumb, and transported from the rack to the footplate and back from the footplate to the rack. The major designs discussed in this report have been broken down into three major areas: (1) gripper design (linear transport mechanism); (2) indexing system; and (3) rack design.

Benson, Mark↗

NASA NTRS1998

Ma'adim Vallis Estuarine Delta in Elysium Basin and Its Relevance as a Landing Site for Exobiology Exploration on Mars

The debouche of Ma'adim Vallis in the Elysium Basin generated a transitional transported sediment structure, which planimetric shape is controlled by the enclosing topography of a deep reentrant gulf of the Basin into the highland. We defined it as an estuarine delta. The location and the importance of this estuarine delta is supported by the theoretical model of graded profile constructed for Ma'adim Vallis, and by two approaches: (i) the reconstruction of Ma'adim Vallis downstream course from Gusev to Elysium Basin, and (ii) the survey of the sediment deposit in the alleged estuary. The longitudinal graded profile of Ma'adim Vallis finds its base-level in the Elysium Basin, at a about 1000 m elevation, which is in agreement with the observed Basin shoreline. This model is supported by observational evidence of flow between the northern rim of Gusev crater, and the Elysium Basin shoreline. This downstream course of Ma'adim Vallis can be divided into three hydrogeologic regions. into three hydrogeologic regions. (a) The first region is a flooded plain (Zephiria Mensae), consisting in chaotic terrain formed by highland rocks, and disintegrated lava of the western flank of Apollinaris. Morphologic indicators of the flood process are: (1) the sediment deposit over the Gusev crater northern rim that reflects the overspilling of the crater-lake water through a 40-km wide gap provided by an ancient impact crater, (2) the tear-drop shaped feature on the northeastern flank of Apollinaris Patera, and (3) the chaotic terrain that suggest the emergence of ground water generated by the seepage of the crater lake through high-permeable broken rampart material. This underground water circulation sustained by the hydrostatic pressure of the crater-lake has likely generated a hydrothermal system in the volcanic environment of Apollinaris Patera. The stratigraphy of the flooded area is identified as Hesperian age, with occurrences of Noachian hilly individual features, and as Amazonian flooded plain and chaotic material, (b) The second region is located on the western flank of Apollinaris Patera. It is surrounded by relics of deep valleys that suggest a former downstream course of Ma'adim Vallis. The geologic setting of this region (Lucus Planum) is interpreted to be an Amazonian formation composed by the middle and lower members of the Medusae Formation., c) The third region corresponds to the convergence of the west and east branches of Ma'adirn Vallis into a deep re-entrant wide gulf that penetrates about 100 km into the highland. This topographic depression is delineated by the 1000 in elevation contour. This gulf has formed an estuarine configuration centered at 3S/190W within the Elysium Basin. This configuration has favored the formation of a estuarine sedimentary delta, because of topographically controlled lateral migration. This estuarine structure is strongly dominated by the incoming supply of Ma'adim Vallis fluvial sediment extracted from Zephiria Mensae and Lucus Planum. The obtuse-angle geometry of the estuary increases the sedimentation rate, which is higher than in the course of the channel. The sediment deposition process is governed by the estuarine water circulation. The inflowing loaded fluvial water enters the estuary as a bottom current, and mixes with the relatively less-loaded water of the receiving basin. When they mixed. the inflowing fluvial material, and the landward basin circulating water generate an accumulation of highly-diversified estuarine deposit stratification. This accumulation of material is mostly centered in the transitional zone of the delta. The sediment trapping efficiency of the estuary is function of the energy balance between the inflowing fluvial water, and the ingoing basin current. The submergence of the delta by the rising of the water-level increases the estuary water-depth, and consequently the sediment entrapment is favored. The locus of sediment accumulation moves landward in the zone of inflowing fluvial water. This results in the rising of the channel base-level, thus in the increase of the length of the longitudinal graded-profile. The sediment deposit facies of the zone A shows a generally smooth surface. The longitudinal deposit is bordered by alluvial terraces that reflect the variations of the channel level. The waning of the Elysium Basin caused the erosion of the Basin estuarine zone by small channels, this episode being characterized by dissected tear-drop shaped mesa-like morphologies in the delta. Our estuarine delta model predicts a lithostratigraphic depositional sequence associated with the water submergence and the transgression of Elysium Basin. The thickness of the estuarine sediment corresponds to the Elysium Basin levels changes relatively to the bed floor of the estuary, The depositional sequence of Ma'adim Vallis are described: (1) a pro-current filled region (A), where fluvial are longitudinally accumulated by the inflowing water, (2) inverse current from Elysium Basin (B), where fluvial and lacustrine sediments are accumulated, and (3) zone of current equilibrium (C), where the sediments are distributed as a shoreline at the boundary of the estuarine delta. The estuary sedimentology dynamics collects and keeps the record of the geologic unit material crossed by Ma'adim Vallis, and those of the lakebed deposit of Elysium Basin. The predicted mixed stratigraphic sequence from fluvial and lacustrine sediment makes this site an exceptional environment to concentrate potential multi-origin biologic records. We envision four possible strategies to explore this sedimentologic record: (1) longitudinal surface and subsurface traverses in region A to investigate outcrop levees, (2) exploration of the mesa walls in region B, (3) deep drilling hole lodging of the sequential deposits in the zones A and B, and (4) surface and subsurface exploration of the shoreline delta. The expected results for each of these strategies are: (1) in the deepest layers of region A are predicted frequent and abundant coarse material, sandy lenses lamination grading downward from sand to cobbles. Volcanic debris from the Noachian crustal Plateau unit material, hydrothermal altered rocks, carbonates, Hesperian and possibly Amazonian volcanic material, from Apollinaris Patera, altered rocks and carbonates from Zephiria Mensae are expected. As a favorable environment for inception of life, possible biological records are expected in transported rock, (2) At the surface, and subsurface (<=100 m), large deposits sandy to silted material from Elysium paleolake basin mixed with fine-grained sediments from Ma'adim Vallis are expected mostly in the upstream part of region B, (3) on the shoreline of the estuarine delta, abundant fine material from Elysium paleolake basin (evaporites, carbonates), mostly Amazonian in age are expected. The Ma'adini estuary is a favorable landing site for all the above mentioned science aspects, and .for its location. The site lies near the equator, which is favorable for the rover solar power supply, and at 1000m elevation, which is a favorable configuration for the descent system braking. Another advantage is the extent of the area of high scientific interest (33,000 sq km), which provides a good ellipse, and potential long study traverses.

Grin, E. A.↗

NASA NTRS2000

Mechanical Abrasion as a Low Cost Technique for Contamination-Free Sample Acquisition from a Category IVA Clean Platform

The proposed Mars Sample Transfer Chain Architecture provides Planetary Protection Officers with clean samples that are required for the eventual release from confinement of the returned Martian samples. At the same time, absolute cleanliness and sterility requirement is not placed of any part of the Lander (including the deep drill), Mars Assent Vehicle (MAV), any part of the Orbiting Sample container (OS), Rover mobility platform, any part of the Minicorer, Robotic arm (including instrument sensors), and most of the caching equipment on the Rover. The removal of the strict requirements in excess of the Category IVa cleanliness (Pathfinder clean) is expected to lead to significant cost savings. The proposed architecture assumes that crosscontamination renders all surfaces in the vicinity of the rover(s) and the lander(s) contaminated. Thus, no accessible surface of Martian rocks and soil is Earth contamination free. As a result of the latter, only subsurface samples (either rock or soil) can be and will be collected for eventual return to Earth. Uncontaminated samples can be collected from a Category IVa clean platform. Both subsurface soil and rock samples can be maintained clean if they are collected by devices that are self-contained and clean and sterile inside only. The top layer of the sample is removed in a manner that does not contaminate the collection tools. Biobarrier (e.g., aluminum foil) covering the moving parts of these devices may be used as the only self removing bio-blanket that is required. The samples never leave the collection tools. The lids are placed on these tools inside the collection device. These single use tools with the lid and the sample inside are brought to Earth in the OS. The lids have to be designed impenetrable to the Earth organisms. The latter is a well established art.

Dolgin, B.↗

NASA NTRS2005

Astrobiology and the Exploration of Gusev Crater by the Mars Exploration Rover Spirit

We assess the availability of nutrient elements, energy and liquid water on the plains surrounding Columbia Memorial Station by evaluating data from Spirit in the context of previous Mars missions, Earth-based studies of martian meteorites and studies of microbial communities on Earth that represent potential analogs of martian biota. The compositions of Gusev basalts resemble those of olivine basalts beneath the seabed on Earth that deep drilling has shown to support life. Of particular relevance to biology, phosphate abundances are much greater in Gusev basalts (0.84 +/- 0.07 wt. % P2O5) than in oceanic basalts (typically 0.06 wt. %).

DesMarais, I. David↗

NASA NTRS2000

Future Mars outpost architecture

This paper describes an outpost designed with the JPL Mars Long Range Planning Team's goals in mind. The design focuses on subsurface mapping and characterization, accomplished through seismic mapping and deep drilling.

outpost robotic Mars↗

NASA NTRS2009

NASA Tech Briefs, August 2009

Topics covered include: Aligning a Receiving Antenna Array to Reduce Interference; Collecting Ground Samples for Balloon-Borne Instruments; Tethered Pyrotechnic Apparatus for Acquiring a Ground Sample; Enhanced Video-Oculography System; Joint Carrier-Phase Synchronization and LDPC Decoding; Dual-Polarization, Sideband-Separating, Balanced Receiver for 1.5 THz Modular Battery Charge Controller; Efficient Multiplexer FPGA Block Structures Based on G4FETs; VLSI Microsystem for Rapid Bioinformatic Pattern Recognition; Low-Noise Amplifier for 100 to 180 GHz; Improved Fabrication of Ceramic Matrix Composite/Foam Core Integrated Structures; Inert Welding/Brazing Gas Filters and Dryers; Fabricating Copper Nanotubes by Electrodeposition; Reducing Aerodynamic Drag on Empty Open Cargo Vehicles; Rotary Percussive Auto-Gopher for Deep Drilling and Sampling; More About Reconfigurable Exploratory Robotic Vehicles; Thermostatic Valves Containing Silicone-Oil Actuators; Improving Heat Flux Performance of Flat Surface in Spray-Cooling Systems; Treating Fibrous Insulation to Reduce Thermal Conductivity; Silica-Aerogel Composites Opacified with La(sub0.7)Sr(sub0.3)MnO3; Cyclic Oxidation Behavior of CuCrAl Cold-Sprayed Coatings for Reusable Launch Vehicles; Ceramic Fiber Structures for Cryogenic Load-Bearing Applications; Elastomer Reinforced with Carbon Nanotubes; Biologically Inspired Purification and Dispersion of SWCNTs; A Technique for Adjusting Eigenfrequencies of WGM Resonators; Low-Pressure, Field-Ionizing Mass Spectrometer; Modifying Operating Cycles to Increase Stability in a LITS; Chamber for Simulating Martian and Terrestrial Environments; Algorithm for Detecting a Bright Spot in an Image; Extreme Programming: Maestro Style; Adaptive Behavior for Mobile Robots; Protocol for Communication Networking for Formation Flying; Planning Complex Sequences Using Compressed Representations; and Self-Supervised Learning of Terrain Traversability from Proprioceptive Sensors.

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NASA NTRS2004

Ultrasonic Apparatus for Pulverizing Brittle Material

The figure depicts an apparatus that pulverizes brittle material by means of a combination of ultrasonic and sonic vibration, hammering, and abrasion. The basic design of the apparatus could be specialized to be a portable version for use by a geologist in collecting powdered rock samples for analysis in the field or in a laboratory. Alternatively, a larger benchtop version could be designed for milling and mixing of precursor powders for such purposes as synthesis of ceramic and other polycrystalline materials or preparing powder samples for x-ray diffraction or x-ray fluorescence measurements to determine crystalline structures and compositions. Among the most attractive characteristics of this apparatus are its light weight and the ability to function without need for a large preload or a large power supply: It has been estimated that a portable version could have a mass <0.5 kg, would consume less than 1 W h of energy in milling a 1-cm3 volume of rock, and could operate at a preload <10 N. The basic design and principle of operation of this apparatus are similar to those of other apparatuses described in a series of prior NASA Tech Briefs articles, the two most relevant being Ultrasonic/ Sonic Drill/Corers With Integrated Sensors (NPO-20856), Vol. 25, No. 1 (January 2001), page 38 and Ultrasonic/ Sonic Mechanisms for Deep Drilling and Coring (NPO-30291), Vol. 27, No. 9 (September 2003), page 65. As before, vibrations are excited by means of a piezoelectric actuator, an ultrasonic horn, and a mass that is free to move axially over a limited range. As before, the ultrasonic harmonic motion of the horn drives the free-mass in a combination of ultrasonic harmonic and lower-frequency hammering motion. In this case, the free-mass is confined within a hollow cylinder that serves as a crushing chamber, and the free-mass serves as a crushing or milling tool. The hammering of the free-mass against a material sample at the lower end of the chamber grinds the sample into powder in a relatively short time. The restriction of the free-mass to axial motion only makes the grinding very efficient. The free-mass can be fabricated to have teeth on its lower face to enhance the grinding effect. Optionally, there can be a hole at the bottom of the chamber covered with a sieve to tailor the size distribution of the powder leaving the crushing chamber.

Sherrit, Stewart↗

NASA NTRS2015

Aram Chaos: a Long Lived Subsurface Aqueous Environment with Strong Water Resources Potential for Human Missions on Mars

Aram Chaos, Mars is a crater 280 kilometers in diameter with elevations circa. minus 2 to minus 3 kilometers below datum that provides a compelling landing site for future human explorers as it features multiple scientific regions of interest (ROI) paired with a rich extensible Resource ROI that features poly-hydrated sulfates [1]. The geologic history of Aram Chaos suggests several past episodes of groundwater recharge and infilling by liquid water, ice, and other materials [1-3]. The creation of the fractured region with no known terrestrial equivalent may have been caused by melting of deep ice reservoirs that triggered the collapse of terrain followed by catastrophic water outflows over the region. Aram Chaos is of particular scientific interest because it is hypothesized that the chaotic terrain may be the source of water that contributed to the creation of nearby valleys such as Ares Vallis flowing toward Chryse Planitia. The liquid water was likely sourced as groundwater and therefore represents water derived from a protected subsurface environment making it a compelling astrobiological site [2]. The past history of water is also represented by high concentrations of hematite, Fe-oxyhydroxides, mono-hydrated and poly-hydrated sulfates [1, 2]. Poly-hydrated sulfates are likely to contain abundant water that evolves at temperatures below 500 degrees Centigrade thus conferring Aram Chaos a potentially high value for early in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) [4]. The geologic history also calls for future prospecting of deep ice deposits and possibly liquid water via deep drilling. The most recent stratigraphic units in the central part of Aram Chaos are not fractured, and are part of a dome-shaped formation that features bright, poorly-consolidated material that contains both hydrated sulfates and ferric oxides according to OMEGA (Observatoire pour la Minéralogie, l'Eau, les Glaces et l'Activité) data [5]. These surface material characteristics are preliminary indications of their potential use in civil engineering activities that involve regolith moving and hauling, while further study is needed to assess traverse-ability challenges. The widespread distribution of sulfates is also of interest as a resource for the use of sulfur as a binding compound in regolith-based concrete for constructions. The terrain depressions caused by the rock fracturing events may challenge surface mobility but also suggest the possibility of using such natural features for additional shielding from space radiation and as emplacement of nuclear surface power reactors for the same reason. The high concentration of hematite (up to 16 percent) in some of the smoother recent terrains of the central part of Aram Chaos [2] is a favorable attribute for metal extraction ISRU to create iron-based feedstock for in-situ fabrication of replacement parts or their repairs. Preliminary data on Aram Chaos indicate that it offers a combination of many critical criteria for human missions to the surface of Mars: equatorial region at low Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter (MOLA), evidence of hydrated minerals over large areas and at high concentrations tied to historic evidence of liquid water over long periods.

Sibille, L.↗

NASA NTRS1985

Precise Electrochemical Drilling of Repeated Deep Holes

Tooling enables maintenance of close tolerances. Tooling includes guide that holds electrochemical drilling electrodes in proper relative alinement and guide-positioning fixture clamps directly on reference surfaces of strut. High precision achieved by positioning tooling anew on each strut before drilling: Tolerances of (0.008 mm) maintained in some details.

Kincheloe, J. P.↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Vacuum Sealable Container (VSC) and Astronaut Lunar Drill (ALD) for Artemis

Introduction: NASA’s Artemis Program is under development to send first woman and next man to the Moon. Artemis will utilize a suite of new technology for Lunar exploration, including new space vehicles, new space suits, and new Astronaut Tools. Honeybee Robotics has been working with NASA JSC to develop a new Vacuum Sealable Container (VSC) and new Astronaut Lunar Drill (ALD) for the upcoming Artemis missions. Vacuum Sealable Container: Sample return continues to be the “Holy Grail” of space exploration, allowing for the analysis of materials using Earth-based laboratories instead of needing to miniaturize and ruggedize instrumentation for space. The Apollo missions to the Moon had several kinds of Sealable Containers which brought back Lunar samples for analysis [1]. These samples are still being analyzed, fifty years later. The VSC requirements are different from that for Apollo containers and as such, new development was required. One major difference between Artemis samples and those from Apollo is the desire to bring back volatiles which may be part of lunar regolith. The VSC is designed to withstand a high-pressure differential caused by sublimating volatiles. Because of the new, stricter sealing requirements, additional features have been added to the VSC. For example, the seal on the container is required to be more robust, thus required more force to actuate, and the seal must be locked in place with a secondary mechanism. Astronaut Lunar Drill: The ALD is designed to be a multi-functional platform for Lunar sample acquisition. The drill builds on lessons learned from the Apollo Lunar Surface Drill (ALSD), as well as Honeybee’s long history of mechanized sample acquisition devices for space [2]. The main functionality of the ALD is Deep Core Regolith Drilling. Additional functionality includes Surface Rock Coring (SRC), and GeoTech Tools (GTT). The ALD is a rotary-percussive drill designed with deep drilling in mind. The ALD is currently designed to have decoupled rotary and percussion subsystems to allow for maximum battery life and reduced fatigue on the crewmember. Honeybee drill technology will automatically engage the percussion when needed to drill at maximum efficiency. The mechanized drill stand helps improve drilling efficiency; the system utilizes advanced drilling algorithms which only require the crewmember to hold a single switch. Additionally, the stand aids in extraction of deep cores, something which was a problem on Apollo. The SRC functionality of the ALD utilizes Honeybee’s Eccentric Tube Core Breakoff technology to collect and retain rock core samples. This technology has also been infused into the Perseverance rover mission. The ALD is removable from the stand to allow crewmembers to collect samples from large boulders. Bringing back rock cores samples instead of full rocks allows for a wider variety of samples to be returned to Earth for study and puts them in a uniform form-factor for effective sealing and analysis. SRC bits will utilize the power of the drill’s percussion system to drill hard Lunar rocks and expedite sample acquisition. The mechanized stand on the ALD allows for additional attachments for taking geotechnical measurements with a Static Cone Penetrometer (SCP) and a Shear Vane (SV). With the stand, the ALD can take SCP measurements with the touch of a button, storing data for return to Earth. SV measurements utilize the ALD’s Rotary motor to spin the vanes in a controlled manner, getting clean data untampered by human error. References: [1] Bar Cohen and Zacny (2009), Drilling in Extreme Environments - Penetration and Sampling on Earth and Other Planets, Wiley. [2] Bar-Cohen and Zacny, Advances in Terrestrial and Extraterrestrial Drilling, CRC Press. [3] Myrick (2003), Core Break-off Mechanism. US Patent No. 6,550,549 Acknowledgements: This work has been supported by NASA via SBIR Phase 3.

Artemis↗

NASA NTRS1993

Iridium in sediments containing large abundances of Australasian microtektites from DSDP hole 758B in the Eastern Indian Ocean and from DSDP hole 769A in the Sulu Sea

Excess Ir found in sediments at the Cretaceous/Tertiary (K/T) boundary and in other (e.g., Pliocene) sediments from deep sea drilling cores is widely interpreted as evidence of major impact events. The Australasian tektites originated in an impact event approximately 0.77 Ma ago; microtektites have been found in deep-sea sediment cores from throughout the Indian Ocean, the Philippine Sea, and western Pacific Ocean, but Ir has not been previously reported in these horizons. The deep-sea record of tektites is of particular interest, because in contrast to most continental occurrences, the stratigraphy preserves the original depositional position. Recently several cores having exceptionally high contents of Australasian microtektites have been investigated, Glass and Wu found shocked quartz associated with the microtektites. We used neutron activation to determine concentrations of Ir and other elements in two cores bearing microtektites, one from Deep Sea Drilling Project (DSDP) hole 758B in the Eastern Indian Ocean and one from DSDP hole 769A in the Sulu Sea (near Mindanao, Philippines). The sedimentation age for the microtektite layers in core 758B lies between 0.73 - 0.78 Ma and agrees well with the mean laser-fusion Ar-40/Ar-39 age of Australasian tektites of 0.77 +/- 0.02 Ma by Izett et al. We are able to resolve a small positive Ir enhancement in 758B. Core 769A shows too much scatter to allow resolution of an Ir peak.

Schmidt, Gerhard↗

NASA NTRS2016

Auto-Gopher-2 - Wireline Deep Sampler Driven by Percussive Piezoelectric Actuator and Rotary EM Motors

Two of the key purposes of future NASA’s solar system exploration of planetary bodies are the search for potentially preserved bio-signatures and for habitable regions. To address these objectives, a biologically inspired wireline deep rotary-percussive drill, called Auto-Gopher, has been developed. This drill employs a piezoelectric-actuated percussive mechanism for generating impulsive stresses and breaking formations, and an electric motor to rotate the bit to break material and remove the cuttings. Initially, the drill was designed as percussive mechanism for sampling ice and was demonstrated in 2005 at Lake Vida, Antarctica, reaching about 2 meters depth. The lessons learned suggested there is a need to augment the percussive action with bit rotation in order to maximize the penetration rate. The first generation implementation of the rotary augmentation was focused on the demonstration of this capability. In 2012, during the 3-day field test, the drill reached a 3-meter deep in gypsum. A separate mechanism was used to break and remove the cores. The average drilling power consumption was in the range of 100-150 Watts, while the rate of penetration was approximately 2.4 meters per hour. Currently under development is the second-generation drill, called Auto-Gopher-2. The drill will be fully autonomous. In this paper, the capabilities that are being integrated into the Auto-Gopher-2 are described and discussed.

Auto-Gopher Drill↗

NASA NTRS1988

Macrofossil extinction patterns at Bay of Biscay Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary sections

Researchers examined several K-T boundary cores at Deep Sea Drilling Project (DSDP) core repositories to document biostratigraphic ranges of inoceramid shell fragments and prisms. As in land-based sections, prisms in the deep sea cores disappear well before the K-T boundary. Ammonites show a very different extinction pattern than do the inoceramids. A minimum of seven ammonite species have been collected from the last meter of Cretaceous strata in the Bay of Biscay basin. In three of the sections there is no marked drop in either species numbers or abundance prior to the K-T boundary Cretaceous strata; at the Zumaya section, however, both species richness and abundance drop in the last 20 m of the Cretaceous, with only a single ammonite specimen recovered to date from the uppermost 12 m of Cretaceous strata in this section. Researchers conclude that inoceramid bivalves and ammonites showed two different times and patterns of extinction, at least in the Bay of Biscay region. The inoceramids disappeared gradually during the Early Maestrichtian, and survived only into the earliest Late Maestrichtian. Ammonites, on the other hand, maintained relatively high species richness throughout the Maestrichtian, and then disappeared suddenly, either coincident with, or immediately before the microfossil extinction event marking the very end of the Cretaceous.

Ward, Peter D.↗

NASA NTRS1981

Sub-Ocean Drilling

The National Science Foundation (NSF) initialized a new phase of exploration last year, a 10 year effort jointly funded by NSF and several major oil companies, known as the Ocean Margin Drilling Program (OMDP). The OMDP requires a ship with capabilities beyond existing drill ships; it must drill in 13,000 feet of water to a depth 20,000 feet below the ocean floor. To meet requirements, NSF is considering the conversion of the government-owned mining ship Glomar Explorer to a deep ocean drilling and coring vessel. Feasibility study performed by Donhaiser Marine, Inc. analyzed the ship's characteristics for suitability and evaluated conversion requirement. DMI utilized COSMIC's Ship Motion and Sea Load Computer program to perform analysis which could not be accomplished by other means. If approved for conversion, Glomar Explorer is expected to begin operations as a drillship in 1984.

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