 Menus & Submenus
|
| Related Links
|
|
|
AMASE 2005: 13-26 August
Ed Vicenzi & Marilyn Fogel working at "Blueberry" site
Nodules in sandstones= Pre-Blueberries
AMASE in Black, Murchison Fjord, Svalbard
Barbeque on the shores of Bocfjorden
Expedition Leader Hans Amundsen & Science Leader Andrew Steele
Thomas Kleine-Brockhoff and Liane Benning Ice Dancing
Cryoconite Holes: MIni ecosystems on glacial surfaces
Queen Thora (Marilyn Fogel) initiates new AMASERs
Verena Starke working in the ship's lab
Jen Eigenbrode at the Troll Spring Fox Den
Marc Fries, Ivar Midtkandal, Hans, Steelie, and Eammon Shaw Celebrating after a successful Ice coring day!
Hans Amundsen coring the ice
Bjorn Jamtveit at Ebbadallen
Libby Hausrath
Paul Meakin searching for patterns at Jotun Springs
A. Lonnie Lane testing JPL spectrometer
Carbonate precipitation with cyanobacteria at Troll Springs
Eammon Shaw, Artist, with Blueberry Ball
Maia Schweizer at the PCR hood, Murchison Fjord
Maggie Turnbull and Anje Royne at Rifle Practice
Marilyn Fogel telling Dag Dysthe's Fortune, Bocfjorden
|
Summary Meeting AMASE 2005
August 25, Polarsyssel
The purpose of this meeting was for the AMASE group to know who has done what and who will do what during the coming year. Andrew Steele, Science Coordinator of AMASE, chaired the meeting and asked for coordination of our efforts, without stepping on proverbial intellectual toes. He felt that it is important for perpetuating the synergy expressed whilst on the expedition. Repeated analyses by different lab groups, while always a careful path, could be avoided if a central plan were available to all scientists participating in AMASE. AMASE is an example of “Guerilla science at its best.” Steele thought that it was important to communicate its excitement and importance to NASA managers.
Jennifer Eigenbrode is asked to start a list serve for AMASE, and agrees to do so.
The AbSciCon (open Astrobiology meeting) will be held in Washington, DC, from the 26th to the 30th of March. It was proposed that we coordinate an AMASE meeting to coincide. Marilyn Fogel will work on seeing that a full session for AMASE results is part of the program. Carnegie is hosting this meeting with help from NAI Central. For other meetings, please acknowledge AMASE in future abstracts, including education and public outreach aspects.
Andrew Steele with Marc Fries, Verena Starke, and Maia Schweizer brought several life detection instruments to AMASE this year. Only the Real time PCR system failed.
Because these instruments are designed to produce rapid data in the field or ship laboratory, this group had accomplished an impressive array of data.
1. At the “Blueberry” site, they determined that lichens dominate the ATP signals (indicating living active biomass). The matrix of the sandstone had a low level of microbial activity. Steele summarized that, “The outcrop is walking off with lichens!”
Based on results from the LAL assay that detects bacterial cell wall materials (living or dead), the bare stones have 10 x 6 cells within a blueberry surface. However, the nodules found with the sandstones themselves are sterile. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) was used to assess the genomes that are functioning actively. Specific DNA primers for Eubacteria, cyanobacteria, nitrogen fixation, methanogenesis, fermentation, and RUBISCO were used in tests conducted on board the Polarsyssel. In 2 of 4 samples, there were strong signals for cyanobacteria and RUBISCO, which are indicative of photosynthetic activity. With the exception of the interior nodules, all of the samples contained multiple species living within microns of each other. Conclusions from this and other work at the outcrop point to the fact that these “Blueberries” were probably not formed by microbial products, but once on surface, microbiology interacted with geochemistry.
2. Ice cave at Sverrefjell: The life detection equipment was deployed on the ridge above the cave. The cleaned ice corer tested negative for life, meaning that it had been successfully cleaned with successive washes and rinses of alcohol, Chlorox, and hydrogen peroxide. Every ice and rock sample examined for ATP and LAL levels was positive, meaning that active microbes were present within the wall rock/ice contact, at the top and bottom of the ice cave cores, and within the ice itself. The rock/ice interface is by far the most microbially active, whereas the green rock in the ice was low in microbial activity, yet measurably greater than the blank. Fungi are growing in the brown cracks. 10 x 2 bacteria were found on the fresh surfaces. In weathered soils of Sverrefjell, all sorts of microorganisms, including methanogens, were confirmed by PCR analysis. The bottom of ice core has signs of RUBISCO and cyanobacteria. Why these organisms are here and how they exist needs further confirmation. Andrew and Hans Amundesen believe this ice may be as old as 1 Million years coincident with the volcano’s eruption.
Discussion: What conclusive proof is needed? If this were a recent feature, it should be filled with rubble rather than water/ice. Ed Vicenzi suggested measuring particle density within the ice. Gene Benchley’s group find things in Greenland ice cores, thus a thorough literature review was suggested. Steele put forward the following working hypothesis: The Cave ice is 1 million years old, and inside of it is trapped the original ecosystem. Tests include DNA sequencing of organisms and dating the carbonate rocks.
3. Murchison Fjord Precambrian sequence: All of the life detection techniques worked for finding viable life on the outcrop. The collection/sampling procedures carried out on the stromatolite outcrop may be the only sample set tested for microbiology in the field that will then go on for organic geochemistry. Microarrays for common microbial biomarkers were deployed.
Whether stromatolites are formed by biology or not is a hotly debated field. The AMASE group in total may be able to contribute to this topic with its diverse points of view and multiple measurement capabilities.
A. Lonnie Lane interrogated a xenolith with 85 UV fluorescent measurements. In about 6 or 7 places, UV fluorescence was different by 5 ? in intensity relative to other areas on that rock. Because mantle xenoliths are good analog targets for Mars, this particular specimen represents the type of potential analysis that might go along with assisting the biological techniques used by Steele and coworkers. Lonnie’s instrument worked well in the laboratory, but had some issues with the cold when used in the field. He will continue to upgrade this instrument, interpret the data collected on this trip, and improve software for data analysis in the coming months. A trip to visit the CIW-Geophysical Laboratory will be planned for sometime this fall. Bill Abbey collected rocks from different environments for testing various parameters potentially indicative of habitability. The data will be analyzed at JPL in collaboration with Pan Conrad (AMASE 2004).
Discussion included thoughts on how to measure light penetration in rocks. Continued coordination with other groups will help further this instrument to a position where it might be considered for flight. 4:50 pm
Marilyn Fogel continued a broad sampling program for stable C, N, O, and H isotopic analyses including plants, soils, rocks, and bones. The goal of this work is to continue to distinguish abiologically derived organic matter from biologically formed bio- and geochemicals. This year she collected gases emanating from both Troll and Jotun thermal areas, which will be analyzed for content (e.g. CO2, CH4, H2) and isotopic composition. The work will continue to provide measurements of carbon content and isotopic composition, which are critical for providing a baseline of data from which to compare the biological and spectroscopic measurements. A collection of almost 70 xenoliths from Sverrefjell will be analyzed for %C, ?13C to begin to collect enough data for statistical analyses. Samples chosen ranged from weathered biologically-encrusted samples to large, minimally fractured xenoliths. Nitrogen studies continued at the thermal areas and soils of Sverrefjell. Ammonium concentrations in Jotun springs continue to be elevated 10 fold over those from Troll springs, providing further data on the fact that the two springs have different water sources.
Faunal samples were collected from Bocfjorden and an adjacent lagoon located NW of the Devonian redbeds along with Karen Webb of PGP. Bone, tooth, and aquatic organisms were collected as samples of opportunity. Stable isotopic analyses will be performed on these samples in order to determine the flow of energy and matter in the food web. An array of samples were collected around a fox den that was discovered at the Troll Springs in 2004. Marilyn has measured the transfer of organic matter, particularly nitrogen, from the marine to the tererestrial environment in the area surrounding a kittiwake (a marine bird) colony in Woodfjorden. She will be testing to see if a similar transfer pattern can be determined around the fox den.
A parallel collection of samples was taken for SELDI-TOF (Surface Enhanced Laser Desorbtion Ionization-Time of Flight) analyses to continue the work from 2004. The instrument can detect femtimole quantities of high molecular weight organic matter from 200 to 250,000 daltons.
Paul Meakin studies largely abiotic patterned systems, which have some relevance because abiotic processes can generate patterns that are similar to those often associated with biological processes. For example, patterns in travertine and stromatolites may or may not be biological signatures. In fact, many of the patterns detected in these types of rocks have turned out to be non-biological. Fracturing and weathering are also of interest. With Bjorn Jamtveit, he collected a number of stylolites, rocks that display interfaces caused by pressure induced dissolution processes.
Jamtveit and Meakin also collected samples with distinctive patterns that are similar to those generated by desiccation (mud cracking). However, the patterns also have distinctive features that are not commonly associated with desiccation. At this stage, it is not known if physical, chemical or biological processes dominate the processes that control the formation of these patterns. The age of the processes leading to these patterns is also unknown. Using UV fluorescent measurements Lonnie Lane showed that living organisms are associated with the fracture-like features, but additional investigation will be required to determine if these organisms play a crucial role in the pattern formation process of if the ‘fractures’ merely provide a microenvironment in which the organisms thrive. The specimens collected at Svalbard will be subjected to physical analysis (x-ray tomography, examination of thin sections …) and chemical mapping to generate hypotheses for pattern formation mechanisms that can be tested by laboratory experiments, computer simulation and addition field investigations.
Meakin and Jamtveit will analyze the internal and surface structure of stromatolite specimens collected by Ed Vincenzi and other members of the AMASE group. They will compare quantitative measures, such as the Hurst exponent, with those obtained by other investigators at different sites, and they will explore the refinement of simple computer models (such as the ballistic deposition model) to obtain a better understanding of the growth of stromatolites and address the issue of biotic vs. abiotic origins.
Bjorn Jamtveit and Dag Dysthe continued their study of the geometry of carbonate precipitation at Troll Springs. The importance of this work is to understand the interactions between physical, chemical and biological processes and determine their relative importance. At Troll, they deployed a heat measuring device equipped with an infrared camera suspended over the thermal field to measure how temperature changes according to flow. Their goal is to determine how fluid flow is coupled to the geometry of the terraces on macroscopic and microscopic scales. Bjorn made a detailed collection of samples from older, dormant travertine terraces, in addition to sampling the springs’ fluids. He is now finished with the sampling part of the BocFjorden area research, but will continue with modeling over the year. At Murchison, he collected some of the famous stromatolites in order to provide details of the structures to apply quantitative modeling tools that estimate the roughness of growth surfaces.
Anja Røyne, Dag Kristian Dysthe and Bjørn Jamtveit also studied weathering patterns. The most interesting finding was in Billefjord where egg-shaped rocks are undergoing spheroidal weathering. The fracturing of spheroidal shells may be driven by recrystallisation of anhydrite or by rehydration of anhydrite to gypsum. Samples of these rocks will be analyzed for mineralogy and the process will be modeled numerically.
Jamtveit also collected stylolites with Meakin. Dissolution seams in which insoluble ‘impurities’ accumulate (stylolites) are formed primarily in wet carbonate bearing rocks when they are compacted. The squashing progressively increases the roughness and complexity of the stylolites. The formation of stylolites has important consequences for the rheology of the Earth’s crust, and a better understanding of the growth of stylolites provides important insight into the compaction of carbonates and some other rocks Quantitative analysis of the geometry of stylolite surfaces allows theoretical and computer models for their formation to be evaluated and the dominant growth mechanisms to be determined. .
Jennifer Eigenbrode had five goals for AMASE 05. She collected lichen and endolith rocks to examine lipid profiles with depth. She also collected samples for isolating cyanobacterial and fungal biomarkers and sterols as they relate to bulk lipid chemistry. A collection of large, unfractured rocks were sampled including “blueberry”, thermal springs, the Ice Cave and xenoliths from Sverrefjell. She will be digesting rocks away, thus isolating kerogen for bulk C isotopic analysis. She also collected rocks for assessing biological vs. abiological signatures in lipids. The trip to the Murchison Fjord was a highlight, as many kilograms of rock were collected Neoproterozoic rocks. Previous studies were unsuccessful because they did not know how to sample. Coordinated with the biological life detections, she has a good possibility of being able to study the lipids and determine their diagenetic history. She also collected small rocks from stratigraphic sections for bulk C and S isotopes as a function of lithologies. The GC-MS system (SAM) that will be sent to Mars will use 200-500 mg of rock sample. What can be detected in such a small amount of rock? Discussion followed about whether the Murchison rocks had been exposed or buried for the 780 million year time since formation. Gas escape structures were processed as good targets to assess this.
Marc Fries will continue to chase down the structural carbon in all of these samples, including pyrites and dolomites from the blueberries, the carbonates from the Cave, and the stromatolites. He identified the Murchison stromatolites as 4 different types, and his suspicion is that these forms are based on growth rate. After thin sectioning the rocks, he will interrogate the samples by Raman spectroscopy collecting carbon structural data along with mineralogical data.
Ed Vicenzi collected samples for the Smithsonian collection and an upcoming Astrobiology exhibit. He will be using TOF-SIMS for in situ analysis of organic matter. The work will determine which biomarkers are present and where they are found in the rock. Raman and TOF-SIMS complement each other, as do the other GC-MS and SELDI-TOF analyses. Ed coordinated the field numbering system and will continue to organize some of the collection for common use by AMASE researchers.
Libby Hausrath collected solid samples from Sverrefjell to continue study on weathering rates and processes. She also sampled waters for elemental ratios of ions to get a handle on dissolution rates. In an ambitious experiment she buried samples of olivine and a glass at 20 cm depth in 4 different environments on the volcanic complex. Several samples were collected by sterile techniques for characterizing the microbial populations that are involved in the weathering process in the high Arctic. Much of the previous published work focused on the fungi and the lichens, so she will try a broader approach to include bacteria.
Viebke will complete three or four radio programs aimed at adults for the NBC. Her first piece will be a 1/2-hour program on collecting the ice core with Ed Vicenzi leading us all the way. The second will be a 1/2-hour program on the warm springs, followed by a 15-minute chat with Maggi Turnbull in the field. This program will report on Maggi’s planet hunting abilities and how they relate to the simple life on Earth. There is a possibility for a fourth 1/2-hour program on ancient life and stromatolites from the Murchison portion of the trip. Shows will be aired on Norwegian public radio starting around 5 of September.
Hans Governor Amundsen will work on the ice cores and magnesite caves, including the carbonate globules. He will also be coordinating with a laboratory that specializes in analyzing the isotopic composition of trapped gases and fluids in these cores. He will continue to be organizing future expeditions, including perhaps a spring trip based at Ny Alesund. Hans expressed that he was most impressed with the hard work up at the ice cave in the face of challenging weather conditions (“Better work than most Norwegian soldiers.”) He thanked us all for contributing to AMASE 2005.
Ivar Midtkandal noted that everyone has made the job of safety easy this year. “See you all next year.” At the Carnegie, we plan to see Ivar in October when he will learn some analytical skills on biomarkers and isotopes for completing his dissertation research.
Liane Benning sampled the ice in the cave along with the ice in the modern world. The closet analogies she could think of are the “cyroconite holes”, where melting of surface glacial ice underneath a rock results in the development of a small ecosystem. She and Susanna Jorge sampled three different glaciers and sedimentary outflows. They will try to compare things in terms of particulates, and have a look at microbiology. Because ice algae tolerate extreme frozen environments, they are reasonable analogs for life on a much colder planet. At Murchison fjord, she sampled six different types of snow algae: green, pink, yellow, yellow-green, brown, and black. Liane and Susanna will look at the pigments using Raman spectroscopy. Finally, Liane did some bacterial culturing from specimens collected at the blueberry site, and some of the plates that were inoculated are showing microbial growth. She chose media known to be good for slow growing cold organisms.
Liane is also coordinating samples and data from the Blueberry site, and will be drawing up a list of specific specimen numbers. If AMASErs want to get more samples in coordination with others, this is the time to pull together your thoughts and ideas on this. By the end of year, she requests that you send in data with ample explanation so that she can include it in a joint publication.
Last words: Please acknowledge the AMASE team. Outcrops and field sites are an AMASE “thing”. Coordinate information flow. Most believed that the coordination of samples was much better this year than in previous years.
Meeting adjourned for our last meal of boiled potatoes.
Marilyn Fogel
25-29 August 2005 First draft
31 August 2005 Second draft
|
|
|
|
