Mauna Kea, Hawaii, as an Analog Site for Future PlanetaryResource Exploration: Results from the 2010

ILSO-ISRU Field-Testing CampaignInge L. ten Kate1; Rob Armstrong2; Bodo Bernhardt3; Mathias Blumers4; Jack Craft5; Dale Boucher6;

Eric Caillibot7; Janine Captain8; Gabriele Deleuterio9; Jack D. Farmer10; Daniel P. Glavin11; Trevor Graff12;John C. Hamilton13; Göstar Klingelhöfer14; Richard V. Morris15; Jorge I. Nuñez16; Jacqueline W. Quinn17;Gerald B. Sanders18; R. Glenn Sellar19; Leanne Sigurdson20; Ross Taylor21; and Kris Zacny, M.ASCE22

Abstract: The major advances in knowledge of extraterrestrial bodies come from in situ measurements on robotized measuring devicesdeployed by international space missions, for example, on theMoon andMars. It is essential to test these instruments in environments on Earththat bear a close resemblance to planetary conditions.Within the framework of the 2010 International Lunar Surface Operation In Situ ResourceUtilization (2010 ILSO-ISRU) Analog Test, a suite of scientific instruments developed for in situ lunar research was field tested and cali-brated on the Mauna Kea volcano in Hawaii on January 27 to February 11, 2010. This site will be used as one of the future standard test sitesto calibrate instruments for in situ lunar research. In 2010, a total of eight scientific teams tested instrument capabilities at the test site. In thispaper, a geological setting for this new field-test site, a description of the instruments that were tested during the 2010 ILSO-ISRU fieldcampaign, and a short discussion of each instrument about the validity and use of the results obtained during the test are provided. Theseresults will serve as reference for future test campaigns. DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)AS.1943-5525.0000200. © 2013 American Society ofCivil Engineers.

CE Database subject headings: Field tests; Planets; Space exploration.

Author keywords: Field testing; ILSO-ISRU; Planetary analog site; Instrument testing.

Introduction

Terrestrial analog environments are places on Earth with geologicaland environmental characteristics that resemble those that exist on

an extraterrestrial body (Léveillé 2009). The purpose of usingthese terrestrial analog sites for planetary missions can be dividedinto the following four basic categories: (1) to learn about plan-etary processes on Earth and elsewhere; (2) to test methodologies,

1Visiting Research Scientist, Centre of Physics of Geological Processes,Univ. of Oslo, Sem Sælands vei 24, NO-0316 Oslo, Norway; formerly,Assistant Research Scientist, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center,Greenbelt, MD 20771, and Assistant Research Scientist, Goddard EarthScience and Technology Center, Univ. of Maryland, Baltimore County,Baltimore, MD 21228 (corresponding author). E-mail: science@ingeloes.com

2Senior Software Developer, Neptec Design Group, 302 Legget Dr.,Kanata, ON, Canada K2K 1Y5.

3Diplom-Ingenieur, von Hoerner & Sulger GmbH, Schlossplatz 8,D-68723 Schwetzingen, Germany.

4MIMOS Hardware Specialist, Mars Mössbauer Group, AK Klin-gelhöfer, Johannes Gutenberg Univ., D-55099 Mainz, Germany.

5Manager, Exploration Technology Group, Honeybee Robotics, 460W.34th Street, New York, NY 10001.

6Senior Director Innovation, Northern Centre for Advanced Technology(NorCAT), 1545 Maley Drive, Sudbury, ON, Canada P3A 4R7.

7Advanced Systems Engineer, Xiphos Technologies, 3981 St-LaurentBoulevard, Suite 500, Montreal, QB, Canada H2W 1Y5.

8Chemist, NASA Kennedy Space Center, FL 32899.9Professor, Univ. of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies, Toronto,

ON, Canada M3H 5T6.10Professor, School of Earth and SpaceExploration, Arizona StateUniv.,

Tempeh, AZ 85287.11Research Scientist, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, 8800 Green-

belt Road, Greenbelt, MD 20771.12Planetary Scientist, Jacobs Technology, ESCG, P.O. Box 58447,

Houston, TX 77258-8447.

13Deputy Director, Pacific Int. Space Center for Exploration Systems,200 W. Kawili Street, Hilo, HI 96720.

14Head of the MIMOS project, Mars Mössbauer Group, Institute ofInorganic Chemistry and Analytical Chemistry, Johannes Gutenberg Univ.,D-55099 Mainz, Germany.

15Planetary Scientist, NASA Johnson Space Center, 2101 NASA Park-way, Houston, TX 77058.

16Ph.D. Student, School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona StateUniv., Tempeh, AZ 85287.

17RESOLVE Payload Project Manager, NASA Kennedy Space Cen-ter, Mailstop NE-S-2, Kennedy Space Center, FL 32899.

18InSituResourceUtilization (ISRU)ChiefEngineer, Propulsion andPowerDivision, NASA-Johnson Space Center, Mail Code EP3, Houston, TX 77058.

19Optical Engineer, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Tech-nology, Mail Stop 306-392, 4800 Oak Grove Dr., Pasadena, CA 91109.

20Geotechnologist, Northern Centre for Advanced Technology (NorCAT),1545 Maley Drive, Sudbury, ON, Canada P3A 4R7.

21Algorithm Developer, Aerodyne Industries, NASA Johnson SpaceCenter, 2101 Nasa Parkway, Houston, TX 77058.

22Vice President andDirector, Exploration TechnologyGroup, HoneybeeRobotics Spacecraft Mechanisms Corporation, 398 W. Washington Blvd.,Suite 200, Pasadena, CA 91103.

Note. This manuscript was submitted on July 20, 2011; approved onJanuary 9, 2012; published online on July 21, 2012. Discussion periodopen until June 1, 2013; separate discussions must be submitted forindividual papers. This paper is part of the Journal of Aerospace Engi-neering, Vol. 26, No. 1, January 1, 2013. ©ASCE, ISSN 0893-1321/2013/1-183e196/$25.00.

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protocols, strategies, and technologies; (3) to train highly qualifiedpersonnel, as well as science and operation teams; and (4) to engagethe public, space agencies, media, and educators (Lee 2007; Léveillé2009).

Several of these environments are studied as Mars analogs, suchas the hyperarid regions of the Atacama Desert in Chile (Navarro-González et al. 2003), the Antarctic Dry Valleys (Wentworth et al.2005) and permafrost (Dickinson and Rosen 2003), the Rio Tintohydrothermal springs in Spain (Amils et al. 2007), and the Egyptiandesert (Heggy and Paillou 2006) (for an overview, see Léveillé2009). An example of a lunar analog site is the Vredefort dome inSouth Africa (Gibson et al. 2002). Other sites are selected based onthe ability to test a complete mission concept or plan, such as theLava Mountains, California (Hinze et al. 1967), and the volcanicfields around Flagstaff, Arizona, for Apollo astronaut training (seehttp://astrogeology.usgs.gov/About/AstroHistory/astronauts.html).Long-term field testing campaigns with more permanent infra-structures have also been established to provide a base for mul-tidisciplinary field research as well in the development of newtechnologies and operational strategies for planetary missions. Theseinclude theHaughton-Mars Project Research Station at Devon Island,Canada (Lee and Osinski 2005), the Arctic Mars Analog SvalbardExpedition (AMASE) at Svalbard, Norway (Steele et al. 2007), thePavilionLakeResearch Project at Pavilion andKellyLakes (Lim et al.2009, 2011), and the Pacific International Space Center for Explo-ration Systems (PISCES) in Hawaii (Schowengerdt et al. 2007; Dukeet al. 2007).

In this paper, the focus is on the instrument testing activities atthe 2010 International Lunar Surface Operation In Situ ResourceUtilization (ILSO-ISRU)AnalogTest (Sanders and Larson 2011) onthe Mauna Kea volcano in Hawaii. This campaign was coordinatedby the Northern Centre for Advanced Technology (NORCAT)in collaboration with the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), theGerman Aerospace Center (DLR), and the National Aeronauticsand Space Administration (NASA), through the PISCES program.The primary reasons for selecting this site as a lunar analog werethe following:1. Local material: The fine-grained, volcanic nature of the ma-

terial, tephra, is a suitable lunar analog, and can be used tosimulate excavation, site preparation, and oxygen extractiontechniques, with results that can be compared in a straightfor-ward manner to laboratory tests.

2. Terrain: The location provides a large number of slopes, rockavalanches, etc., to perform mobility tests in a very confinedarea. Long-range traversing is not possible; however, all of thetesting was aimed at either site preparation or resource pro-specting, and for the early tests the terrain variation was moreimportant than distance.

3. Logistics: The presence of a cafeteria, bedrooms, and me-chanical shops within a few kilometers of the test site, andaccess to the Hilo airport and infrastructure within only 2-hdriving distance helps to mitigate risk associated with fieldlogistics and operations.

4. Location: Hawaii is an accessible central location for multiplespace agencies including NASA, CSA, the Japanese SpaceAgency, the Korean Space Agency, and other Pacific nationspace agencies, which facilitates wide international participa-tion in field campaigns.

The ILSO-ISRU analog field campaign primarily focused onhardware testing of technologies and systems related to resourceidentification, extraction, storage, and utilization, with a small butgrowing role designated for in situ science measurements. The pri-mary goals of the campaign were the following:1. Oxygen (O2) production from regolith;

2. ISRU product storage, distribution, and utilization;3. Integration of lunar ISRU and scientific instruments;4. Site preparation;5. Field geology training; and6. Field characterization by scientific instruments.In this paper, a geological overview of this new field-test site and

a description of the instruments that were tested during the 2010campaign are provided. The focus of this paper is on aforementionedGoals 1, 4, and 6, using scientific instruments; further description ofthe other goals of this campaign can be found in Sanders and Larson(2011). The results are presented grouped per goal. First, the sitepreparation, field characterization, and instruments used for this partof the field testing are described. Then, the participation of thescientific instruments in the oxygen production is described. Thispaper will serve as reference for future ISRU field-testing campaignson Mauna Kea.

Geological Setting of Hawaii, Mauna Kea,and the Pu’u Hiwahine Test Site

Hawaiian volcanism is sourced by a mantle plume (Wilson 1963);i.e., a deep-seated magmatic source, likely generated at the core-mantle boundary (Burke and Torsvik 2004) that for the last ∼40million years has been relatively stationary. Mantle plumes pro-duce basaltic volcanoes on the overlying Pacific Plate in this area.The northwest motion of the Pacific Plate continues to move thevolcanoes away from their source, leading to an array of extinctvolcanoes from the active volcanoes of modern Hawaii that in-crease in age to the northwest along the Hawaiian-Emperor sea-mount chain.

The test site was located on the Big Island of Hawaii. This areacontains five separate shield volcanoes that erupted somewhat se-quentially, thus reflecting the continuing northwestward motion ofthe Pacific Plate over the Hawaiian hotspot (Clague and Dalrymple1987). From the oldest to the youngest, these are Kohala (extinct),Mauna Kea (dormant), Hual�alai (active but not currently erupting),Mauna Loa (active), and K�ilauea (active, erupting continuouslysince 1983) (Wolfe et al. 1997).

Mauna Kea has a peak altitude of 4,205 m above sea level, or10,200 m above the ocean floor, and is the southernmost of the eightmain islands of the Hawaiian Island Chain (Fig. 1). Mauna Kea isapproximately 1 million years old and last erupted approximately4,500 years ago. Hawaiian volcanoes evolve through a sequence offour eruptive stages (preshield, shield, postshield, and rejuvenated)(Clague andDalrymple 1987, 1989),which are distinguished by lavacomposition, eruptive rate and style, and stage of development. MaunaKea transitioned from shield to postshield stage 200,000e250,000years ago. This postshield stage can be divided into two substages, thepostshield basaltic substage (240,000e70,000 years ago) and thehawaiitic substage (66,000e4,000 years ago) (Frey et al. 1990), andaccumulates at a rate of approximately 0.004 km3/year (Wolfe et al.1997). Postshield lavas are composed of more alkalic basalts (silicaundersaturated and relatively rich in sodium) than the shield-stagebasalt. Mauna Kea is the only volcano in the Hawaiian chain whereglacial till is found (Porter 1979), anddeposits of three glacial episodesfrom 150,000 to 200,000 years ago have been preserved; the oldesttwo (at roughly 150,000 and 70,000 years ago) during the postshieldbasaltic substage and the youngest (from approximately 40,000 to13,000 years ago) during the postshield hawaiitic substage (Wolfeet al. 1997).ThePu’uHiwahine site,where thefield testing tookplace,is a cinder cone located below the summit of Mauna Kea (19�45039.2900 N, 155�28014.5600 W) at an elevation of∼2,783 m (Fig. 1).The site is operated by the PISCES.

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Basic Field Operations

The instruments used in this study form a representative set of in situinstrumentation that could be included on a future lunar or Marsmission to locate, extract, and identify resources in the near-surfaceregolith. This instrument suite covered a wide range of measure-ments and was comprised of a relative navigation vision system,triangulation and light detection and ranging (LIDAR) (TriDAR);a ground penetrating radar (GPR); a drill system to provide samples;a multispectral microscopic imager (MMI); a miniaturized Möss-bauer spectrometer (MIMOS II) and its advanced version MIMOSIIA with additional X-ray fluorescence (XRF) capability; and twovolatile analyzers, volatile analysis by pyrolysis of regolith in-strument (VAPoR) and the regolith and environment science andoxygen and lunar volatile extraction instrument (RESOLVE). Theinstruments used in the field were funded through NASA’s Moon,Mars Analog Mission Activity (MMAMA) and Field ScienceAnalog Test (FSAT) programs as well as through the CSA. Theinstruments and data collections were complementary. The TriDarand GPR provided critical foundational data to the field operationsby collecting three-dimensional (3D) images of the surface and

subsurface at a designated area. From the fused TriDAR and GPRdata, ideal subsurface drilling and sampling locations in the areadesignated ISRU-1 (Fig. 1) were selected. Subsurface samples wereobtained from these locations at ISRU-1 by using coring drills, augerdrills, and alcohol-cleaned handheld scoops and spatulas. Theaugers drilled to depths of 4m,while samples were collected at 1-mintervals using the scoops and spatulas. These samples were thendistributed among the various science teams, who analyzed themon their respective instruments. RESOLVE, a mobile instrumentcomprised of a coring drill and a volatile analysis package, operatedas a stand-alone instrument at the ISRU-2 area (Fig. 1), where itcollected and analyzed samples in situ, to participate in soil analysisfor oxygen production. The MIMOS instruments participated in thesample characterization for oxygen production aswell. Although thefeedstock for the ISRU oxygen production plant was preselectedbefore the field tests, the RESOLVE operations simulated in situscientific exploration, characterization, and prospecting for feed-stock for the ISRU oxygen production units. For example, geologicmaterials with high total iron and ilmenite (FeTiO3) contents makegood feedstock for oxygen production by the hydrogen reductionprocess (e.g., Allen et al. 1993, 1994, 1996).

Fig. 1.Geological map of the Island of Hawaii, or the Big Island (Trusdell et al. 2006, with permission fromUSGS): the circlemarks the location of theILSO-ISRUfield location; the inset shows a satellite image of the PISCES ILSO-ISRUfield location called Pu’uHiwahine; both sample sites used in thiscampaign are marked on this picture; samples from ISRU-1 were collected using Honeybee Robotics deep drills and then investigated using the MMI,Mössbauer, and VAPoR; and ISRU-2 was drilled and investigated using the RESOLVE instrument

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Site Selection

The ISRU-1 sampling site (Fig. 1) was selected and characterizedusing a combination of TriDAR, global positioning system (GPS)data, and GPR.

TriDAR

TriDAR (Neptec Design Group) is a combination imaging sensorthat exploits triangulation and LIDAR technologies to provide de-tailed images and guidance information. During the ILSO-ISRUcampaign TriDAR was used to collect 3D surface data for a poten-tial landing region as well as sampling regions for the variousscientific instruments. TriDAR is equipped with Neptec’s 3Disoftware tool kit. This tool kit is based on the principle that 3D datacan be used in real-time applications over relatively modest band-width data links, thus eliminating the collection of redundant data.

Ground Penetrating Radar

The GPR consisted of two multiagent teaming (MAT) mobilityplatforms (Fig. 2) working together to efficiently and autonomouslyconduct a subsurface survey of the landing pad area selected from thesurface data obtained by the TriDAR. The mobility platforms wereeach equipped with a commercially available Noggin 1,000 GPRand the NogginPlus data acquisition platform. The GPR survey datawere filtered using an application developed by the University ofToronto Institute for Aerospace Studies and subsequently trans-ferred to a Xiphos Technologies’ hybrid processing card. A remoteoperator then evaluated the data using a set of geotechnical criteriadeveloped by NORCAT. The GPR data and vision system data arefused using 3D visualization software (Voxler) to produce a 3Dsurface and subsurface model. The drill sites were selected remotelyto evaluate the accuracy of the GPR data and provide ground truth forthe selected site.

Prior to scanning the area, spheres were placed within the Tri-DAR’s expected field of view [Fig. 3(a)] and their GPS coordinateswere obtained. Using a method called GPS localization, the 3D scandata captured by the TriDAR was then converted into a local ref-erence frame using theGPS coordinates of the spheres. This 3D east-

north-up Cartesian coordinate system is independent of the positionof theTriDAR. In this systema series of lunar ISRUoperations couldbe conducted, including pad site selection, autonomous GPR sur-veying of the site, and data fusion of the acquired surface andsubsurface data. The PadSiteSelect software application (Neptec)combines this information into a graphical representation of a Tri-DAR scan, based on which site was selected as suitable for veri-fication by GPR. Height data in PadSiteSelect gave an indication ofthe topography of the area, slope information was provided, and thestandard deviation indicated the roughness of the analyzed area. Thissite-selection activity was meant to mirror a lunar ISRU missionwhere robotic precursors are deployed and must survey the sur-roundings to allow ground operators to select a suitable location tobegin construction of a landing site for future lunar modules. Datacollected by the TriDAR were downloaded and processed by aremote operator at the CSA Exploration and Development Oper-ations Centre, who then used the processed data in the selection of anappropriate site for verification. The data obtained from the GPRgenerated a subsurface map depicted in Fig. 3(b). This mapwas thenused to identify rocks and other obstacles that may have impededlanding pad construction. Fusion of the surface data acquired by theTriDAR data and the subsurface GPR data autonomously collectedby the MAT mobility platforms produced a 3D model of thepotential landing pad construction site. This resulting model isshown in Figs. 3(c and d). Based on the map created by the GPR-TriDAR data, several sample sites were selected. Here, the resultsobtained from Drill Site 1, Hole 1, also known as ISRU-1 aredescribed. The location and altitude of ISRU-1 are given in Table 1together with the drills used for sampling and their respectivesampling depths.

Field Characterization by the Scientific Instruments

Drilling

The surface at ISRU-1 was covered with a dry tephra layer (thefragmented material produced by a volcanic eruption) and had littleor no cohesion. Two subsurface access instruments were usedto acquire the soil samples. These were (1) a NORCAT-providedDutch auger (see http://www.benmeadows.com/refinfo/techfacts/augers_introduction_298.htm), also known as anEdelman auger, forshallow samples; and (2) a custom screw auger for deep samples(Fig. 4). The Dutch auger was a manually operated drill to collectsamples to a maximum length of 15 cm. The screw auger, built byHoneybee Robotics, came in four, 1-m-long segments and wasmanually driven by a 702-W Hilti TE 7A rotary-percussive, batterypowered drill. To penetrate deeper, the sections were screwedtogether. The auger outside diameter (o.d.) was 2.5 cm, the rootdiameter was 1.25 cm, and the flute depth (and, in turn, thethickness of the soil layer between the auger flutes) was 0.6 cm.Both drill types are normally used when sampling cohesive soils(soils where particles stick to each other such as in wet soils, clay-rich soils, etc.), and do not work well in dry, sandy, and cohesionlesssoils. However, a few inches below the surface the tephra was moist,and in turn cohesive, and thus relatively easy to sample with bothauger tools.

The Dutch auger was manually deployed to a depth of 90 cm in15-cm increments [Fig. 5(a)]. Each 15-cm sample weighed . 1 kgand was immediately bagged and sealed to avoid contaminationand loss of moisture. The subsamples for scientific analysis weretaken either just prior to or after the bagging process. The samplingprocedure for the screw auger included drilling to a 1-m depth,pulling the auger out of the hole [Fig. 5(b)], taking the samples,

Fig. 2. MAT mobility platforms collecting GPR survey data in thefield: these data are fused with previously acquired TriDAR surface datato produce a 3D surface and subsurface model

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cleaning off the remaining soil from the auger flutes [Fig. 5(c)],attaching an additional 1-m segment, and drilling to a 2-m depth.This procedure was repeated until 4-m depth was reached. Thesamples were brushed and/or scraped into sampling bags using abrush or a laboratory spatula directly from the lower part of the auger.Sterile samples for VAPoR were taken first to avoid contaminationof the samples by plastic from the sampling bags, hands, or non-sterile tools [Fig. 5(d)]. The soil sampled just above the bit wasmarked as 1-, 2-, 3-, and 4-m-depth samples, depending on thedrilling depth. The samples collected from ISRU-1 were then an-alyzed by the MMI, the Mössbauer, and VAPoR.

Drilling to a depth of 4 m was a relatively easy task. In fact, theflutes on the drill auger acted like a screw, and the auger was screwingitself in very fast without the application of additional vertical force,calledweighonbit.Most of the time, the drill was used in a pure rotarymode (as opposed to a rotary-percussive mode). However, in a fewinstances where drilling was getting tough (probably when a drill bitencountered occasional rock) a percussive mode was engaged (thedrill was used as a rotary-percussive drill) and the penetration rateincreased again. With greater depth, it was found that the drillingtorque would increase—that is, the driller had to hold the drill morefirmly to prevent his hand from being twisted. At a certain depth, twohands had to be used to prevent the drill from counterrotating.

However, the toughest problem was pulling the drill out of thehole. It was observed that while the drill was screwing itself in veryfast, the auger flutes were getting packed up with cuttings. The endresult was that the auger became choked up and jammed in a hole(i.e., more cuttings were being generated than what the auger couldconvey to the surface). Reverse and forward rotations while pullingon the drill were tried. This was the only effective method, althoughit was very slow. It took two people working at their maximum

Fig. 3.Modeled TriDAR and GPR data: (a) site where the TriDAR and GPR data were recorded (the spheres are used for GPS localization; the boxrepresents the analyzed patch); (b) subsurface map of the area in the box generated using the GPR data; (c) top view of the 3Dmodel produced from theTriDAR data; (d) bottom view of combined GPR and TriDAR data

Table 1. ISRU-1 Sample Site

Site Location Altitude (m)

Samplingdepth for

Dutch auger

Samplingdepth for

screw auger

ISRU-1 N 19� 450 39.40 0

W 155� 280 07.00 02769.7 Surface to

90 cmDiscretesamples at1, 2, 3, and 4 m

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strength to pull the drill out of the hole in over 20 min. It was foundthat the solution to auger chokingwas to limit the penetration rate bypulling up on the drill, which was certainly counterintuitive. Ina conventional drilling process, a driller has to push on the drill andnot pull on it. Reducing the penetration rate allowed time for thecuttings to freely move up the auger flutes. To prevent any futureauger jamming occurrences, every so often the auger performancewas monitored. This included pulling the drill up by an inch, whilecontinuing rotation, which was done to determine whether the drillcould in fact be still pulled out. If it was found that it became tough topull out the drill, the rotational speed was increased while keepingthe drill in place, allowing excess tephra to move up the flutes.

Multispectral Microscopic Imager

The MMI (shown in Fig. 6) employs multiwavelength light-emittingdiodes (LEDs), a substrate-removed indium-gallium-arsenide(InGaAs) focal-plane array (FPA), and no moving parts, to providemultispectral, microscale images in 21-wavelength bands extendingfromvisiblewavelengths to 1.75mmin the infrared (Nuñez et al. 2010).The sensor for the MMI is a substrate-removed InGaAs FPA that issensitive over a spectral range of 0.47e1.75 mm. LED illuminationwavelengths are activated singly, in succession, as images are acquiredby the FPA, providing a data set comprised of 21 spatially coregisteredmicroimages. The MMI provides a spatial resolution (63 mm), field ofview of 403 32mm, and depth of field (5 mm) comparable to thatprovided by a geologist’s hand lens. Because the InGaAs FPA detectortechnologydoesnot require cooling, it extends the spectral range to1.75mm in the infrared with no increase in mass compared with the siliconFPAs used in the current state-of-the-art in situ microimagers.

The MMI characterized the microtexture and mineralogy ofmaterials present. To document the depth-related changes in themicrotexture and mineralogy, MMI data sets for each 1-m intervalwere obtained, to a total depth of 4 m. Applying remote sensingtechniques developed for analysis of multispectral imagery, multi-spectral images were processed and analyzed using the remote sens-ing and image analysis software package ENVI (a commercialsoftware package sold by ITT Visual Information Solutions). Naturaland false color images were prepared while the spectral end members(i.e., representing the purest spectra present in the spectral image dataset)were identified and used to producemaps showing the distributionof spectral signatures in the sample. Reflectance spectra (reflectanceversus wavelength) were extracted for the spectral end members andcompared with the online USGS spectral library (Clark et al. 2007) toidentify the best-fit minerals for each spectral endmember. The colorsof the pixels in the spectral end member maps indicate which spectralend member is the closest match for each pixel. The results presentedhere compare the surface tephra at ISRU-1 with a subsurface coresample obtained from a depth of 2 m.

ISRU-1 Surface Tephra SampleFigs. 7(a and b) show a natural color image and a spectral endmember map of the ISRU-1 surface materials obtained with theMMI. At this site, the surface sediments consisted of poorly sortedvolcaniclastic sand.Most grains comprising the coarser size fractionof the tephra (coarse sand to small pebbles) were subrounded andexhibited light-toned to rust-colored (darker) alteration rinds [seeFig. 7(a)]. These coatings had spectral features consistentwith halidesalts, which appeared to have precipitated on the grain surfaces bythe evaporation of pore water within the upper capillary fringe zoneof the soil. In contrast, thefine sand fractionwas amixture of (1) dark(unaltered), glassy basalt grains, (2) lighter-toned grains showingrust-colored alteration coatings, or altered grain interiors, and (3)a poorly characterized reddish matrix material of silt to clay-sizedparticles. Darker grains were finely porphyritic and containedmicrolites of light-toned plagioclase feldspars in a black aphanitic toglassy matrix. The presence of magnetite and illmenite was alsoindicated by the presence of magnetic grains, particularly in thesurface tephra where they appeared to have been concentrated bywind erosion.

A spectral end member analysis of the surface tephra samplesuggested that the grain coatings were enriched in Fe-oxides andpossibly poorly ordered clays [seeFig. 7(c)]. The absorption featuresat MMI Bands 1.22, 1.43, and 1.52 mm were overtones of thestructural OH vibration as well as combination tones of H2O

Fig. 4. Drills used in sampling: (a) the Dutch auger used to acquireshallow (down to 91-cm) samples in 15-cm increments; (b) the screwauger used to collect subsurface samples by assembling 1-m drillsegments to form a 4-m drill string

Fig. 5. Sampling: (a) sampling with the Dutch auger; (b) samplingwith the screw auger (tephra was captured within the auger flutes);(c) subsample was brushed directly from the flutes closest to the drill bitand into a sampling bag; (d) sterile samples were obtained first whilewearing gloves

Fig. 6. Field configuration of the MMI: the imager directly measuresthe exposed rock surface using LEDs; the external light is blocked by thecover to ensure optimal analysis conditions

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consistent with the presence of both structurally bound OH=H2O(∼1.43 mm), such as in hydrated minerals like clays or Fe-oxyhydroxides, and pore water (∼1.22 and 1.52 mm). The depthof these absorptions increased with the core depth (compared withthe results for the 2-m core).

ISRU-1 Two-Meter Depth (22-m) SampleIn contrast to the surface sample, the MMI image of the22-m coresample revealed that the tephra at this depth consisted of fine-grained, well-sorted, volcaniclastic sand [Figs. 8(a and b)]. Thelow reflectance of the sample (as well as the high grain cohesioncoming out of the corer), suggests an elevated pore-water contentcompared with the surface sample. The sample had a significantamount of bound water as observed by the absorption feature at1.43mm throughout the entire image. The boundwater was consistentwith the presence of abundant hydrated minerals, including ironoxyhydroxides such as goethite and ferrihydrite, whichwas suggestedby the spectral absorptions of around 0.90 mm [Fig. 8(c)]. This in-terpretation was also consistent with the dark reddish brown phasespresent in the fine-grained matrix component of the tephra. The finematrix of the 22-m core at this depth exhibited physical properties(stickiness because of grain cohesion) consistent with the presence ofclays. However, the absence of clay diffraction features in the high-resolution X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis of the22-m material inthe laboratory suggested that this fine component was likely domi-nated by amorphousweathering products, such as ferrihydrite. Finally,

the case for abundant Fe-oxide weathering products in the tephra wasfurther strengthened by the presence of spectral absorptions around0.90mm, attributed to Fe31. The 1.05-mmabsorption, interpreted to bea result of reduced Fe21 phases, is attributed to the presence of iron-bearing silicates, pyroxene and olivine.

Volatile Analysis by Pyrolysis of Regolith

VAPoR is a pyrolysis mass spectrometer for evolved gas analysis(EGA) based on the concept of the sample analysis atMars (Mahaffy2008) instrument on the 2011 Mars Science Laboratory mission.VAPoR is designed to detect volatile species in the atmosphereas well as gases evolved from volatile-bearing minerals includingwater, noble gases, and hydrocarbons at high-priority targets ofastrobiological interest including the polar regions of the Moon andMars. The VAPoR flight instrument will consist of a miniature time-of-flight mass spectrometer (Getty et al. 2010) and a sample ma-nipulation system containing six individual ovens that can be heatedto at least 1,200�C (ten Kate et al. 2010). The VAPoR field unit usedin this study (Fig. 9) consists of a commercial quadrupole massspectrometer (Stanford Research Systems RGA300), one pyrolysisoven that heats samples to a maximum of 1,000�C, and a turbopump(Pfeiffer Vacuum TSU071E, TC600) to keep the internal pressurewithin the operational range of the mass spectrometer (below5310�4 mbar). Pressures above 1023 mbar will damage the massspectrometer by burning out the ion-generating filament. Forthe field tests, samples were heated in the oven from ambient

Fig. 7.MMI analysis of the ISRU-1 surface sample: (a) natural color image and (b) spectral end member map (B) obtained with the MMI; (c) plot ofreflectance versus wavelength for the spectral end members of the surface sample

Fig. 8.MMI analysis of the ISRU-1 (2-m depth) sample: (a) natural color image and (b) spectral end member map obtained with the MMI; (c) plot ofreflectance versus wavelength for the spectral end members of the 22-m sample

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temperature to 800�C at a rate of 20�C/min using a high-voltagepower supply (Kikusui PAN70-5A). Gases released from powderedsamples (up to 10 mg) were then monitored by the RGA300 massspectrometer by scanning from 2 to 150D in unit mass (1D) steps.Because the system is actively pumped during sample heating, theevolved gas traces showbumps and peaks in the temperature range inwhich a certain compound is volatile. Using these profiles, not onlycan the evolved compounds bemeasured but also an indication of itssource can be given. For example, each hydrated clay mineralreleases its water at a different temperature. The evolved gas dataobtained by VAPoR were used to determine the bulk chemistry ofthe soil, estimate water abundances, determine the presence andabundance of aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons, and in somecases, make mineral identifications.

The VAPoR field experiments were conducted as follows:a 10-mg soil or powdered rock sample was inserted into a quartzsample tube holder, which was closed off on both ends withquartz glass wool to prevent the sample from falling out. Both thequartzwool and the quartz tubeswere heated at 500�C for 3 h in air toremove any organic residue. The quartz tube was then inserted intothe sample oven and the field unit was evacuated to pressures on theorder of 1027 mbar. Because the mass spectrometer only operates atpressures below 1024 mbar, the samples were often heated to 50�Ctominimize the internal pressure buildup of the instrument as a resultof adsorbed water in the sample. When the desired operationalpressure was reached, the oven ramp (rate of 20�C/min to 800�C)was initiated and the mass spectrometer was powered on to beginrecording mass spectra as a function of oven temperature.

VAPoR analyzed samples were collected from the surface, 2-mdepth (22 m), and 4-m depth (24 m) at ISRU-1. For this study, thefocuswas on the following organic and inorganic species, as listed inTable 2. Fig. 10 shows the evolved gas profiles for the inorganiccompounds (top three panes) and organic compounds (bottom threepanes) in the samples collected at various depths. The VAPoRresults, like the MMI results, clearly showed increasing waterabundances with depth. The24-m sample contained so much waterthat the temperature ramp had to be stopped and held at 220�C for30 min to lower the internal pressure of the instrument by pumping

out the excess water. The double peak in the 24-m depth plots isa result of keeping the temperature at a constant value of 220�C,while the chamberwas actively pumped.By keeping the temperatureconstant every compound that was volatile at that temperaturewouldbe released until the point where there were no volatiles left. At thatpoint, the internal pressure in the system would drop again to op-erational pressures, which also caused all the volatiles to be pumpedaway. As soon as the sample was heated further, more volatiles werereleased causing the pressure to go back up and creating the secondrise in the evolved gas traces. Without this overpressure, the traceswould have looked more similar to those of the 0- and 22-msamples. The 24-m samples were visually very wet and nearlymuddy upon collection; therefore, the results from the EGA of thissample were not surprising. The surface had a much lower abun-dance of water and some organic fragments, which could be a resultof the harsher surface conditions, such as wind and surface erosion.The abundance of organics increased substantially with depth,suggesting that organics had leached downward with the water.

For the field tests, a new high-temperature alumina-coatedtungsten wire crucible (RD Mathis) was used in the VAPoR fieldtests. Prior to deployment, this oven was baked out in the laboratoryto 1,000�C to reduce outgassing from the alumina crucible. Emptyovens were analyzed as blanks between soil samples for back-ground volatile corrections; however, even after 12 heating cycles upto 800�C outgassing products (e.g., water, alkane fragments) fromthe oven itself were still observed. Therefore, part of the organicsignal detected by VAPoR contributed to this contamination. Al-though it is difficult to draw any final conclusions on the organiccontent of the analyzed samples, the contamination signal was solow that the amount of organics present in the soil overwhelmed thecontamination signal. Therefore, the greater water and organiccontent at lower depths was not considered to be an artifact of theinstrument but rather a valid observation.

Analytical Support for Oxygen Production

Oxygen was produced by a carbothermal processor (ORBITEC).This processor generates oxygen through carbothermal reduction oftephra (Gustafson et al. 2011) and leaves molten tephra as theleftover product. Two instruments participated in sample selectionand analysis to support oxygen production, the MIMOS II andMIMOS IIA instruments and RESOLVE.

Mossbauer Spectrometers MIMOS II and MIMOS IIA

MIMOS II [Figs. 11(aec)] is a contact instrument for placement onrock or soil samples, which does not require any sample preparation.MIMOS II instruments have been onboard the two NASA Marsexploration rovers on the surface of Mars since January 2004 andare still functional after more than 8 years (Klingelhöfer 1999;

Fig. 9. VAPoR field unit with the mass spectrometer, atmosphericinlet, and oven marked

Table 2. VAPoR Species of Interest

Species Name Formula Plotted mass

Organic Methane CH4 13Benzene C6H6 78Toluene C7H8 92Characteristic alkanefragments

39, 43, 57

Inorganic Water H2O 19 ðH172 OÞ

Carbon dioxide CO2 44 ð30. 1ÞNitrogen/carbon monoxide N2=CO 28 ð30. 1ÞSulfur dioxide SO2 64

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Klingelhöfer et al. 2003, 2004; Morris et al. 2004, 2006, 2008).These instruments were also included on the ill-fated RussianPhobos-Grunt mission (Rodionov et al. 2010). An advancedMIMOS IIA is under development for the European Space Agencyand NASA rover missions to be launched in 2018. Major im-provements are the simultaneous acquisition of Mössbauer andXRF spectra, with the highest energy resolution in the XRF modeallowing for very precise determination of elemental composition(Lechner et al. 1996; Alberti et al. 2006).

Mössbauer spectra provide information on the Fe oxidationstate (e.g., Fe0, Fe21, and Fe31), the Fe coordination state (e.g.,tetrahedral and octahedral coordination), and the relative abundanceof Fe among oxidation states, coordination states, and Fe-bearingphases. The element Fe,which ismultivalent and abundant, providesessential geochemical and mineralogical information. Ferrous iron(Fe21) is common in many rock-forming minerals [e.g., olivine,pyroxene, ilmenite, (titano)magnetite, and chromite] and secondaryminerals (e.g., serpentine and sulfates).

MIMOS instruments operate in backscattering geometry andconsume ∼2 W of power. A 57Co source irradiates a sample areaabout 15 mm in diameter. MIMOS II uses four square-shaped PINdiodes with a sensitive area of 1 cm2 each. The advanced version

MIMOS IIA, which is still under development, is equipped witha ring of silicon drift detectors (SDDs) developed by PNSensorGmbH and produced at the Max Planck Institute SemiconductorLaboratory. The energy resolution of the SDD is particularlytemperature dependent and improves with decreasing temperatures.Therefore, measurements were sometimes performed during night-time and earlymorning tomaximize energy resolution, especially forthe X-ray mode of MIMOS IIA. The main goal of the new detectorsystem design is to combine high-energy resolution at high countingrates and a large detector area while making maximum use of thearea close to the collimator of the 57Co Mössbauer source. Möss-bauer operations during the ISRU field test occurred both in theMössbauer field laboratory and, for in situ measurements, on therobotic arm of the NORCAT rover [Fig. 11(c)]. For all measure-ments, communication with the instruments was wireless.

Representative Mössbauer spectra are shown in Fig. 12. Thetop three spectra show spectra for three rocks. The first spectrum,which is dominated byFe21 in themineral olivine [ðMg,FeÞSiO4 ], isfrom an olivine zenolith. The second sample is a massive (dense)basaltic rock that is uncommon in the immediate vicinity of the ISRUbase. Its Fe-bearing phases are dominated by Fe21 in pyroxeneðMg,Fe,CaÞSiO3, ilmenite (FeTiO3), and olivine. The third sample

Fig. 10. VAPoR EGA results: (top three panes) inorganic volatile content of the surface 2- and 24-m samples from the ISRU-1 sampling site (thepeak at mass 19 corresponds to water saturating the RGA detector at 4-m depth); (bottom three panes) volatile organic content of the surface and22-and 24-m samples from the ISRU-1 sampling site (the signal at mass 39 and mass 43 correspond to alkanes saturated at 4-m depth

Fig. 11.Mössbauer Spectrometer MIMOS II setup: (a) MIMOS setup in the experiment box, where it had to reside for radiation safety; (b) MIMOS IIand MIMOS IIA sensor heads in the experiment box; (c) MIMOS IIA mounted on the NorCAT rover performing in situ measurements

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is a vesicular basaltic rock whose dominant Fe-bearing phases areFe21 in olivine and Fe31 in nanophase ferric oxide (npOx). TheMössbauer spectrum for this rock closely resembles the tephra usedas the feedstock for the ISRU oxygen production plant, the fourthspectrum, as can be seen by comparing the two spectra in Fig. 12.The feedstock tephra is directly comparable to the tephra at ISRU-1.

The bottom two spectra in Fig. 12 are the spectrum for the solidend product of the ORBITEC carbothermal reduction processand the spectrum for metallic Fe. The Fe-bearing phases in theORBITECproduct are Fe21 in glass andmetallic Fe. The presence ofmetallic Fe and the absence of Fe31 in the ORBITEC productcompared with the feedstock is clear evidence for reduction of thefeedstock and concomitant loss of oxygen from the tephra. Theabsence of Fe21 from Fe-bearing minerals in the ORBITEC solidshows none have crystallized during cooling of the silicate melt toa glass at termination of heating by the solar concentrator.

Additionally, XRF spectra of the olivine xenolith, the massivebasalt, and the ISRU-1 surface sample were obtained with theMIMOS IIA instrument (Fig. 13). Peaks for Ca and Ti are absent inthe olivine xenolith, as expected for the mineral. The presence of Tifor themassive basalt is consistent with the presence of ilmenite in itsMössbauer spectrum (Fig. 12). Calculation of absolute elementalconcentrations from MIMOS IIA XRF spectra is under develop-ment. On the basis of the change in the oxidation state of Fe betweenthe ISRU-1 tephra and the ORBITEC product and a total FeO1Fe2O3 concentration of∼10% byweight for the tephra, the oxygenyield is estimated to be ∼1-g O/(100-g sample). If other metaloxides are also being reduced, the yield will be higher.

Regolith and Environment Science and Oxygenand Lunar Volatile Extraction

RESOLVE is a drilling andminiature chemistry plant packaged ontoa medium-sized rover that analyzes collected soil for volatile

components by heating the soil and reducing it at high temperaturesin the presence of hydrogen to produce water (Fig. 14). The RE-SOLVE prototype consists of a 1-m core drill and crusher known asthe excavation and bulk regolith characterization, regolith volatilecharacterization (RVC) subsystem, lunar water resource demon-stration (LWRD) subsystem, regolith oxygen extraction (ROE)subsystem, and ground support equipment (GSE). The RESOLVEprototype processing module can be mounted onto any mobilityplatform that would accept its current mass and volume configu-ration. RESOLVE’s capabilities include drilling 1m into soil, takingcore samples, crushing them into 1-mm particles, delivering them toa reusable reactor, heating 25-cm core sample at a time and drivingoff volatiles, analyzing the volatiles using a gas chromatographiccolumn capturing the water and hydrogen evolved, and extractingoxygen by hydrogen reduction. The operation of the gas chro-matograph (GC) was optimized for H2, He, and water detection.Other compounds that could be quantified were N2, O2 or Ar, CO2,CO, CH4, andH2S. The sample in the field introduced to the GCwascontrolled because of the specific scientific demonstration goals ofthis field test (described subsequently). The detection of the volatilesutilized a modified Siemens GC. The dual column GCwas modifiedto a dual oven design and optimized to separate water from inertcomponents on a Porabond-Q column followed by a heart cut thatwas used to separate the inert components (such as hydrogen, he-lium, and nitrogen) on a mol-sieve column. Neon was used as thecarrier gas to allow for the detection of hydrogen and helium. Theinstrument included eight thermal conductivity detectors that wereused to quantify the volatiles based on their unique retention times.

During the ILSO-ISRU campaign RESOLVE collected its ownsample cores. The requirements of this instrument package includedthe ability to clearly distinguish between hydrogen andwater as wellas to quantify low levels of those species and other potential lunarpolar volatiles such as carbon monoxide, ammonia, methane, andhydrogen cyanide. RESOLVE collected its own samples at both

Fig. 12. Representative MIMOS II Mössbauer spectra from the ISRUfield test (all spectra are relative to the midpoint of the metallic-Fespectrum)

Fig. 13. XRF spectra from the MIMOS IIA instrument for three ISRUsamples: measurements were done in situ using the robotic arm of theNorCAT rover for deployment; the olivine xenolith is identified by lowCa and Ti concentrations relative to basaltic rock and soil

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Sites ISRU-1 and ISRU-2 (see Fig. 1); however, only the samplesfrom ISRU-2 were analyzed. Similarly to ISRU-1, the surface atISRU-2 was covered with a layer of dry tephra.

One of the goals of this field test was to demonstrate the detectionof low levels of hydrogen and water evolved during heating ofa tephra sample. For successful testing of the RESOLVE instrumentin this field test, the water and hydrogen content of the sample had tobe known before measurement. Because none of the other scientificinstruments could do this to an accurate level in this field test, theRESOLVE samples were dried and then doped with water andmetal hydride before analysis. This was done to obtain low levels ofa known amount of hydrogen andwater in the collected sample.Waterdoping of the soil was performed by two methods. The first methodwas to simply expose the dried and sieved tephra sample to atmo-spheric conditions. The tephra absorbs a small amount of water fromthe moisture in the atmosphere, typically coming to a water content ofabout 1% byweight. Higher concentrations of water were achieved bydoping a small amount of tephra with liquid water and adding thedoped sample to the reactor. In this manner up to an additional 0.5 g ofwater was added to the reactor. Both doping methods were used in thefield in an effort to illustrate the detection ranges of the GC. Hydrogendoping was performed by manually adding metal hydride (Hy-stor207, lanthanum nickel aluminum metal hydride) to the tephra sam-ple. This metal hydride had the desirable range of vapor pressure (0.43bar at 25�C to 42.6 bar at 175�C) and was passivated to ensure safeoperations in air. To prevent a flammable mixture of gas in the reactorduring heating, the reactor was purgedwith argon prior to heating. Theinstrument was calibratedwith known amounts of water and hydrogenprior to the field test.

The 82.3-g sample core described in this paper was collectedby RESOLVE at Site ISRU-2, on top of the ridge (see Fig. 1) andprepared in the field by sieving and drying. The sample was then

transferred to the reactor anddopedwithwater-bearing tephra andmetalhydride. Subsequently, the sample was heated to 150�C over ap-proximately 1 h. Evolved gases were fed into the GC, which wasoptimized for H2, He, and water detection. The separation of water,CO2, and inert species was performed on a Porabond-Q column, witha heart cut to separate the inert species on a mol-sieve column usinga Deans switch. As the sample was heated, both hydrogen and waterevolved with increasing temperature as shown in Fig. 15.

Fig. 14. (a) RESOLVE rover and instrument package; (b) RESOLVE schematic showing the RVC, LWRD, ROE, and GSE subsystems: for volatileanalysis, the sample is crushed and transferred to the reactor, heated to evolve volatiles, and the gas is transferred to the GC for analysis (RVCsubsystem); the gas is then transferred to the LWRD subsystem where the water and hydrogen are captured (oxygen production takes place within theROE subsystem)

Fig. 15.Gas evolution in the RESOLVE reactor: hydrogen, water, andcarbon dioxide are measured as target gases; argon gas is used to purgethe reactor before heating and does not evolve from the sample at thesetemperatures

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Prior to the transfer of the sample from the reactor to the surge tank,the gas composition in the reactor was 39.4% hydrogen, 6.9% argon,9.5% carbon dioxide, and 44% water. These values were converted tomasses assuming the ideal gas law using the pressure, volume, andtemperatureof the reactor.The results are shown inTable3. These resultsshow that theRESOLVEgas analysis system is able to analyze very lowweight percentages of volatiles in tephra, well below 0.1% by weight.

Discussion

The 2010 ILSO-ISRU campaign was the first campaign witha dedicated science team and not all instruments had previously beenthoroughly field tested. Therefore, the main focus of the campaignwas on the integration and operation of the various scientificinstruments. However, besides these operational tasks great effortwas taken to analyze a few samples with all instruments to obtaina complete data set, which would allow a broad analysis of the site aswell as the compatibility of the instrument set. The aim of the sci-entific operations of the ILSO-ISRU campaign was to collect andcompare data from at least both ISRU-1 and ISRU-2. However,because of startup problems with the incorporation of the scientificinstruments on a technology-focused campaign, as well as startupproblems with several instruments, the data set presented here is themost complete set of the campaign.

From the operational instrument perspective the ILSO-IRSUcampaign proved to be a successful campaign. In previous drillingwork in lunar soil simulants, it was found that the drilling powerrequired to move cuttings up the flutes is much greater than thedrilling power required to break up the formation. This was true notonly for compacted lunar soil simulant but also for ice-saturated andfrozen lunar soil simulant, having strength in excess 40 MPa, whichis the strength of sandstone and limestone (Zacny et al. 2007; Zacnyand Cooper 2007). The drilling rates and problems encounteredduring drilling inMauna Kea tephra were similar to the drilling ratesand the problems encountered in these previous studies as well as onthe Moon (Apollo 15 Mission Report 1973; Apollo 17 MissionReport 1973), thus demonstrating that this particular site is an ex-cellent lunar analog for drilling.

TheMMI successfully imaged a variety of rock and soil materialsunder daytime illumination conditions, providing microtextural andcompositional information in support of the ISRU activities. Thespectral analysis of the MMI data identified major Fe-bearing sili-cates and oxides, as well as the presence of hydrated minerals in-cluding weathering products such as Fe oxyhydroxides, placingminerals within a microtextural context to guide subsampling ofgeologic materials for further analysis onboard a rover with otherinstruments, or in selecting samples for potential return to Earth.

The field test showed thatMössbauer is an effective tool for bothscientific and feedstock exploration and process monitoring (cal-culation of oxygen yield based on Fe reduction). The 2010 ILSO-ISRU field test represented the first analysis of geologic materials bythe current generation of the MIMOS IIA instrument. Future ISRUfield tests will focus more heavily on the MIMOS IIA instrument.

The RESOLVE prototype has shown end-to-end operation ofvolatiles, showing advancements toward flight operation. The

current system highlights a reuseable reactor that facilitates volatileidentification and quantification. Successful low-level detection ofwater and hydrogen during an analogmission highlight the ability ofthis system to detect and quantify lunar volatiles.

The VAPoR instrument characterized several organic com-pounds as well as inorganics such as water. The very high watercontent, especially of the subsurface samples, inhibited in-depthanalysis of the data. This could have been prevented by analyzinga smaller sample (on the order of 1e2 mg instead of 10 mg) or bydrying the sample before analysis, as with RESOLVE; however,given the tight schedule in the field, it was decided to run samplescollected fromother drill sites. As described by tenKate et al. (2008),contamination is an important issue inmissions looking for organics,and volatile outgassing from high-temperature oven materials asdescribed in theVAPoR data section should therefore beminimized.Based on the MIMOS II and MIMOS IIA data, the site is very wellsuited to test oxygen extraction instrumentation.

Conclusions

In this paper, a description and regional geological setting for a newfield analog test site for lunar resource exploration, and a discussionof the results obtained from the 2010 ILSO-ISRU field campaignas a reference for future field testing at this site have been provided.The following instruments were tested: a MMI, a Mössbauer spec-trometer, an evolved gas analyzer, VAPoR, and an oxygen andvolatile extractor called RESOLVE. Preliminary results show that thesediments change fromdry, organic-poor, poorly sorted volcaniclasticsand on the surface, containing basalt, iron oxides, and clays, to morewater- and organic-rich, fine-grained, well-sorted volcaniclasticsand, primarily consisting of iron oxides and depleted of basalt andclays. Furthermore, drilling experiments showed a very close cor-relation between drilling on the Moon and drilling at the test site.

From the results it is difficult to paint a full-scale picture of thetest site. One lesson to be implemented in future field testing cam-paigns is that more focused and structured scientific input is neededto collect sufficient data to generate a stronger scientific publication.This can be achieved by following a more missionlike protocol.

However, in general it can be concluded that the ILSO-ISRU testsite was a good location for testing strategies for in situ resourceexploration at the lunar surface. For drilling purposes theMaunaKeatephra proved to be ideal testing material. The MMI and MIMOS IIinstruments provided important data on the water and oxygen con-tent of the tephra that can be used for ISRU purposes. Partly becauseof the high water content of the tephra the VAPoR analyses weremore focused on organics. RESOLVE operated as a standalonepackage and proved it can detect low levels of compounds importantfor ISRU. However, because of the high (ground) water content ofthe tephra it is difficult to use this site for testing of instruments thatare focused on detection of trace amounts of water. RESOLVEworked its way around it by drying and spiking the samples; VAPoRwill adopt a drying protocol in future tests as well. As a large-scaletest site for testing and integrating a wide range of instruments, thissite is very suitable.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank and acknowledge the CSA andNASA for funding the analog field test infrastructure and campaign,NORCAT for providing the analog field test site infrastructure, andthe PISCES for obtaining access to the analog field test site and pro-viding logistics and assistance for field test operations. The authorswould also like to thank the NASA ROSES FSAT, Astrobiology

Table 3. Mass and Weight Percent of Hydrogen, Water, and CarbonDioxide Evolved from the Sample Collected at ISRU-2

Amount Hydrogen Water Carbon dioxide

Mass (g) 0.0037 0.0371 0.0196Weight % 0.0045 0.0451 0.0238

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Science and Technology Instrument Development (ASTID), andMMAMA programs for instrument funding and field science sup-port. G.K., B.B., and M.B. acknowledge the support by the DLRunder Contract No. 50QX0802.

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