Weathering of Post-Impact Hydrothermal Deposits from the Haughton Impact Structure: Implications for Microbial Colonization and Biosignature Preservation

Hydrothermal environments driven by volcanism are prime astrobiological targets on Mars, due to their ability to support and preserve microbial ecosystems. Volcano -ice interactions on On Earth, volcano -ice interactions produce many hydrothermal habitats available to microbial colonisation, and thus provide an analogue to past environments on Mars, where many landforms have been attributed to volcano -cryospheric interaction. However, Mars exploration urgently requires a framework for identifying such environments on a range of scales and with a range of geological criteria. In this paper rRemote sensing data were combined with sub-mm environmental mapping and sample analysis that included (X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, thin section petrography, scanning electron microscopy, electron dispersive spectrometer analysis, and dissolved ion water chemistry,) to characterise samples from two areas of basaltic volcano -ice interaction: namely Askja and Kverkfjöll volcanoes in Iceland. Askja was erupted subglacially during the Pleistocene, and is now exposed within a volcanic desert. Kverkfjöll is a subglacial volcano beneath on the northern margin of Vatnajökull ice cap, and hosts active hydrothermal systems. NE-trending fissure swarm ridges extend between these two volcanic systems. Multiple Holocene glacial outburst (jökulhlaup) sedimentary deposits lie to the north of Kverkfjöll. Hydrothermal environments at Kverkfjöll were found to be predominantly acidic, with dissolved sulphate dominating the water chemistry. These hydrothermal environments vary across a small (<100 m) spatial scale, and include hot springs, anoxic pools, meltwater lakes, and sulphur-and iron-depositing fumaroles. Biomats, two in association with individual goethite and pyrite mineral terraces, were common at Kverkfjöll. In-situ and laboratory VNIR (440 -1000 nm) reflectance spectra representative of Mars rover multispectral imaging show spectral profiles to be influenced by Fe 2+/3+ -bearing minerals. Overall, sediments and lavas display two types of hydrothermal alteration: a low-temperature (<120°C) assemblage dominated by palagonite, sulfates, and iron oxides; and a high-temperature (>120°C) assemblage signified by heulandite and quartz. This Overall, this work provides a framework for identifying such environments during future exploration of Mars, given their high astrobiological potential, and Claire Cousins -BBK 14/08/12 3 provides a descriptive reference for the two prominent active hydrothermal environments at Kverkfjöllwhich can be used as analogues for those on Mars.

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“…Szynkiewicz et al 2012); impact craters (e.g. Izawa et al 2011), and arctic terrains (e.g. Pollard et al 2009).…”

Section: Searching For 'Habitable' Palaeoenvironmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Glaciovolcanic hydrothermal environments in Iceland and implications for their detection on Mars

Cousins

Crawford

Carrivick

et al. 2013

Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research

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“…As mentioned earlier, Gale Crater on Mars is rich in gypsum, and it is very likely this mineral originated as a consequence of a large meteorite impact in an ancient lake or sea that resulted in an associated hydrothermal system (Newsom et al, 2001). This is not surprising, given that meteorite impact craters are possibly the most common geological landforms in the Solar System (Izawa et al, 2011). What was a surprise, however, was discovery of this indirect evidence of a wet Mars.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Bacterial Communities and the Nitrogen Cycle in the Gypsum Soils of Cuatro Ciénegas Basin, Coahuila: A Mars Analogue

et al. 2012

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The OMEGA/Mars Express hyperspectral imager identified gypsum at several sites on Mars in 2005. These minerals constitute a direct record of past aqueous activity and are important with regard to the search of extraterrestrial life. Gale Crater was chosen as Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity's landing site because it is rich in gypsum, as are some desert soils of the Cuatro Ciénegas Basin (CCB) (Chihuahuan Desert, Mexico). The gypsum of the CCB, which is overlain by minimal carbonate deposits, was the product of magmatic activity that occurred under the Tethys Sea. To examine this Mars analogue, we retrieved gypsum-rich soil samples from two contrasting sites with different humidity in the CCB. To characterize the site, we obtained nutrient data and analyzed the genes related to the N cycle (nifH, nirS, and nirK) and the bacterial community composition by using 16S rRNA clone libraries. As expected, the soil content for almost all measured forms of carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus were higher at the more humid site than at the drier site. What was unexpected is the presence of a rich and divergent community at both sites, with higher taxonomic diversity at the humid site and almost no taxonomic overlap. Our results suggest that the gypsum-rich soils of the CCB host a unique microbial ecosystem that includes novel microbial assemblies.

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“…The sulfides weathered to sulfates and oxides/hydroxides, including copiapite, goethite, jarosite, rozenite, fibroferrite, gypsum, melanterite, and szomolnokite (Izawa et al. ). The chemical and redox gradients present at this deposit are thought to be good energy sources for microbes (Izawa et al.…”

Section: Geological Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Key to understanding these impact‐generated hydrothermal systems are the mineral assemblages that form through low‐temperature weathering of original hydrothermal mineralization after hydrothermal circulation ceased because these are the assemblages observed today (Izawa et al. ; Osinski et al. ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hyperspectral mapping of alteration assemblages within a hydrothermal vug at the Haughton impact structure, Canada

Greenberger

Mustard

Osinski

et al. 2016

Meteorit & Planetary Scien

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Meteorite impacts on Earth and Mars can generate hydrothermal systems that alter the primary mineralogies of rocks and provide suitable environments for microbial colonization. We investigate a calcite–marcasite‐bearing vug at the ~23 km diameter Haughton impact structure, Devon Island, Nunavut, Canada, using imaging spectroscopy of the outcrop in the field (0.65–1.1 μm) and samples in the laboratory (0.4–2.5 μm), point spectroscopy (0.35–2.5 μm), major element chemistry, and X‐ray diffraction analyses. The mineral assemblages mapped at the outcrop include marcasite; marcasite with minor gypsum and jarosite; fibroferrite and copiapite with minor gypsum and melanterite; gypsum, Fe3+ oxides, and jarosite; and calcite, gypsum, clay, microcline, and quartz. Hyperspectral mapping of alteration phases shows spatial patterns that illuminate changes in alteration conditions and formation of specific mineral phases. Marcasite formed from the postimpact hydrothermal system under reducing conditions, while subsequent weathering oxidized the marcasite at low temperatures and water/rock ratios. The acidic fluids resulting from the oxidation collected on flat‐lying portions of the outcrop, precipitating fibroferrite + copiapite. That assemblage then likely dissolved, and the changing chemistry and pH resulting from interaction with the calcite‐rich host rock formed gypsum‐bearing red coatings. These results have implications for understanding water–rock interactions and habitabilities at this site and on Mars.

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Weathering of Post-Impact Hydrothermal Deposits from the Haughton Impact Structure: Implications for Microbial Colonization and Biosignature Preservation

Cited by 13 publications

References 41 publications

Glaciovolcanic hydrothermal environments in Iceland and implications for their detection on Mars

Glaciovolcanic hydrothermal environments in Iceland and implications for their detection on Mars

Bacterial Communities and the Nitrogen Cycle in the Gypsum Soils of Cuatro Ciénegas Basin, Coahuila: A Mars Analogue

Hyperspectral mapping of alteration assemblages within a hydrothermal vug at the Haughton impact structure, Canada

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