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JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH,
VOL. 112,
G04S06,
16 PP., 2007
doi:10.1029/2006JG000301
Robotic ecological mapping: Habitats and the search for life in the Atacama Desert
NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, USA
Molecular Biosensor and Imaging Center, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
Department of Hydrology and Water Resources, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA
Department of Earth and Space Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA
Molecular Biosensor and Imaging Center, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Molecular Biosensor and Imaging Center, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Molecular Biosensor and Imaging Center, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Molecular Biosensor and Imaging Center, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Molecular Biosensor and Imaging Center, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Molecular Biosensor and Imaging Center, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
SETI Institute, Mountain View, California, USA
Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
SETI Institute, Mountain View, California, USA
Eventscope, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Universidad Católica del Norte, Antofagasta, Chile
Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Department of Hydrology and Water Resources, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA
Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
As part of the three-year ‘Life in the Atacama’ (LITA) project, plant and microbial abundance were mapped within three sites in the Atacama Desert, Chile, using an automated robotic rover. On-board fluorescence imaging of six biological signatures (e.g., chlorophyll, DNA, proteins) was used to assess abundance, based on a percent positive sample rating system and standardized robotic ecological transects. The percent positive rating system scored each sample based on the measured signal strength (0 for no signal to 2 for strong signal) for each biological signature relative to the total rating possible. The 2005 field experiment results show that percent positive ratings varied significantly across Site D (coastal site with fog), with patchy zones of high abundance correlated with orbital and microscale habitat types (heaved surface crust and gravel bars); alluvial fan habitats generally had lower abundance. Non-random multi-scale biological patchiness also characterized interior desert Sites E and F, with relatively high abundance associated with (paleo)aqueous habitats such as playas. Localized variables, including topography, played an important, albeit complex, role in microbial spatial distribution. Site D biosignature trends correlated with culturable soil bacteria, with MPN ranging from 10-1000 CFU/g-soil, and chlorophyll ratings accurately mapped lichen/moss abundance (Site D) and higher plant (Site F) distributions. Climate also affected biological patchiness, with significant correlation shown between abundance and (rover) air relative humidity, while lichen patterns were linked to the presence of fog. Rover biological mapping results across sites parallel longitudinal W-E wet/dry/wet Atacama climate trends. Overall, the study highlights the success of targeting of aqueous-associated habitats identifiable from orbital geology and mineralogy. The LITA experience also suggests the terrestrial study of life and its distribution, particularly the fields of landscape ecology and ecohydrology, hold critical lessons for the search for life on other planets. Their applications to robotic sampling strategies on Mars should be further exploited.
Received 6 September 2006; accepted 17 May 2007; published 25 September 2007.
Citation: (2007), Robotic ecological mapping: Habitats and the search for life in the Atacama Desert, J. Geophys. Res., 112, G04S06, doi:10.1029/2006JG000301.
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