International Mars Architecture for the Return of Samples (iMARS) Phase II Science Subteam Report – Science Management of Returned Samples

The International Mars Exploration Working Group (IMEWG) chartered an iMARS working group in 2007 to develop a plan for an international Mars Sample Return (MSR) mission potentially occurring in the timeframe 2018-2023. In early 2014, IMEWG reconstituted iMARS with the objectives of elaborating on the scientific management aspects of returned martian samples and incorporating technical developments since 2008 including NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory and planned Mars2020 mission and ESA’s partnership and progress with Roscosmos on ExoMars. In this discussion, the iMARS science subteam describe their approach and some preliminary organizational and operational models for a fully international sample-science management paradigm.

Scientific management of the samples - from reception on Earth to distribution amongst the scientific community and through to long-term curation for many decades hence - is a diverse and complex issue. Samples returned from Mars would be amongst the most scientifically interesting and valuable materials ever recovered and would be the focus of intensive study and investigation for decades to come. Future MSR mission(s) would be international in nature, and a key driver for our discussions is to ensure that any processes we suggest enable internationally collaborative research. A further constraint is the issue of planetary protection, whereby samples must remain in containment until proven non-hazardous to Earth’s biosphere and environment. However, a genuine concern is that the samples become “stuck in containment” and unavailable for wider scientific study. A wide range of geobiological analyses would be carried out, and an important part of planning for MSR is deciding which analyses must be carried out within containment and what could or should be done outside of containment. In addition, the nature and type of geobiological investigations carried out in situ by future missions would have an important influence on activities carried out once samples return to Earth by informing decisions made during preliminary examination, early science, and planetary protection investigations. Our team is strongly committed to disseminating our work to our colleagues in the geo-, bio- and planetary science communities to ensure that a productive dialogue is achieved.