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Activity Number:
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322
- Analyses in Ecology, Epidemiology, and Environmental Policy
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Type:
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Contributed
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Date/Time:
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Wednesday, August 11, 2021 : 3:30 PM to 5:20 PM
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Sponsor:
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Section on Statistics and the Environment
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Abstract #319175
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Title:
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Simulated Stromatolites: Are Martian Fossils Likely to Be Found?
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Author(s):
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Harlan McCaffery* and Chi Chang
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Companies:
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University of Michigan and Michigan State University
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Keywords:
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simulation;
GIS;
astrobiology;
Mars;
geology
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Abstract:
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The search for evidence of ancient life on Mars currently involves costly and infrequent robotic missions undertaken by NASA and other government agencies. One possible form of evidence is sedimentary deposits derived from microbial mats, known as stromatolites. Even if such evidence exists, it is uncertain whether the current methods of exploring the surface of Mars will be likely to discover it. To understand the scientific significance of the failure of a mission to discover stromatolites, it is important to know the probability of their discovery conditioned on their existence. This study estimates the density of stromatolitic rock outcrops in the western delta of Jezero Crater on Mars. Using the proposed path of NASA’s Perseverance rover, and possible distributions of stromatolitic outcrops based on geological studies of the Pilbara supergroup in western Australia, the probability of stromatolite discovery is calculated with simulated geospatial data.
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Authors who are presenting talks have a * after their name.
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