At the end of 2020, will start the next Martian mission of NASA, which will deliver to the surface of the red planet the Mars 2020 Rover. Among the scientific instruments mounted on it, deserves special attention powerful laser, designed for the analysis of rocks from a distance of 7 metres.
The laser is part of a complex Super Cam. Mounted on top of a special mast, it will periodically send pulses to the rocks, heating them to a temperature of nearly 10,000 °C – essentially turning them into vapor. After that another Super Cam device – a spectrometer – will analyse the spectra of vapors and identify them with the sample. This method is called “laser-spark emission spectrometry”.
With it will be studied minerals beyond the reach of the robotic arm-manipulator of the Rover. The NASA was primarily interested in the minerals formed with the participation of liquid water – clays, carbonates, and sulfates. If Mars ever had life, then most likely in the form of microbes next to liquid water, so the Rover will look for a dried up lake with traces of fossilized microorganisms.
Another instrument on Board the Rover is… a microphone. With it, researchers will be able to fix the popping at the time of evaporation by a laser beam of a fragment of rock. As explained by scientists, sound analysis will also help to identify the mineral composition of the evaporated sample.
Source — NASA