Data for Abiotic Origin of Organics in the Martian Regolith

This is the supplemental data for the muscript (submitted): "Abiotic Origin of Organics in the Martian Regolith", and comprises the following: 

_FTIR hyperspectral map 

↪ FTIR hyperspectral data [combined into single .xlsx file]

↪ FTIR pixel location map

↪ Raman IFORS fitting results

_micro-Raman hyperspectral maps

↪ Raman hyperspectral data [per region]

↪ Raman pixel location map [per region]

_microscopy

↪ Reflected Light (RL) image of entire sample

↪ Reflected Light (RL) [per region]

_mossbauer results

_NanoSIMS

↪ NanoSIMS data [per region]

↪ NanoSIMS data images [per region]

↪ NanoSIMS processed data

↪ NanoSIMS standards

_SEM BSE&EDS images

↪ BSE and EDS images [per region]

ABSTRACT

The martian meteorite Northwest Africa (NWA) 11220 and paired stones (notably NWA 7034) are the only group of meteorites that sample a clastic near-surface lithology from Mars. The stones have been recognized as an impact-reworked lithology subjected to an impact-induced hydrothermal system — comparable to the postulated history of Jezero Crater, currently being explored by the NASA Perseverance rover. By applying Mössbauer spectroscopy in combination with several in situ analytical techniques including Raman spectroscopy, FTIR spectroscopy, and NanoSIMS, we show that aliphatic carbon compounds dominate the inventory of insoluble indigenous carbon compounds within NWA 11220. Disordered carbon — present in ~5 μm heterogeneous masses — is preferentially found within porosity where it adjoins the mineral surface of titano-magnetite. This relationship suggests catalytic surfaces have enabled Fischer–Tropsch (FT) synthesis of hydrocarbons. Our in situ micron-scale analytical study indicates that such methods can successfully determine the origin of organic material and, therefore, differentiate abiotic martian organics that exist in the near-surface martian regolith. The multimodal approach will be a key methodology for searching for traces of past life in future samples returned from Mars.