Raman spectroscopy is an ideal tool to analyze the geochemical make up of various compounds, be they solid, liquid, gas, or a combination of multiple phases. This research seeks to determine how changes in both temperature and sediment level impact the spectral signatures of various Mars-analogue brines saturated with sulfate, perchlorate, and chloride salts, and how these data might apply to recurring slope lineae that may be occurring on Martian slopes. This work will allow a reference dataset to be created, which will be instrumental in helping to identify characteristics of unknown samples of brine, including the solid-liquid phase transition, the cooling rates, the degree of sediment inclusion, and the overall chemical composition of in situ brines and aqueous solutions.

This, in turn, will allow for a more thorough understanding of the role of aqueous processes throughout the Solar System, and can help clarify the role these processes might play on bodies thought to contain various quantities of brines, ices, and/or sediment-- including Mars, Europa, Enceladus, Titan, and other icy moons-- providing an additional tool to use in the search for extraterrestrial life. It is likely that these data and observations will grow in importance in the coming years, as more space missions seek to utilize analytical techniques such as Raman spectroscopy to understand planetary geologic processes more fully.