Close - up imaging of Oxia Planum analogue samples under different illumination conditions: preparing for the ExoMars rover mission

作者：Gabriela Ligeza, Tomaso R. R. Bontognali, Lucile Fayon, Axel Bouquety, Beda A. Hofmann, Jean‐Luc Josset, Nikolaus J. Kuhn · 发表于：Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.3389/fspas.2025.1530408 · 被引用次数：1 · 研究领域：Planetary Science and Exploration、Astro and Planetary Science、Spacecraft and Cryogenic Technologies

ExoMars is an astrobiology program led by the European Space Agency, which foresees the launch of a rover that will look for signs of past life on Mars. CLUPI, a close-up imager part of the rover’s payload, is designed for capturing high-resolution images of geological samples. Ensuring that each CLUPI image contains a maximum of relevant scientific information is crucial for optimizing the scientific return of the instrument and for the daily tactical planning of the rover’s activities. This study focuses on identifying the preferred lighting conditions for close-up image acquisition in the area that will be explored by the rover: Oxia Planum. To identify lithologies potentially occurring in this region, we conducted a comprehensive review of past publications on Oxia Planum’s mineralogy and geology and analysed image repositories from previous rover missions to guide our selection of samples relevant to the ExoMars mission. These samples were chosen either because we anticipate their presence at the landing site or because they represent highly interesting targets in a mission primarily aimed at finding potential evidence of past microbial life. The samples were categorized into five groups: 1) clastic sedimentary rocks, 2) rocks with Fe-Mg phyllosilicates, 3) igneous rocks, 4) evaporites, carbonates and morphological biosignatures, and 5) rocks with various sedimentary structures. For each group, we identified diagnostic textures visible in CLUPI images. The rocks were pho...