The ISRU Field Tests 2010 and 2012 at Mauna Kea, Hawaii: Results from the Miniaturised Mossbauer Spectrometers Mimos II and Mimos IIA

Summary: For the advanced Mossbauer instrument MIMOS IIA, the new detector technologies and elec-tronic components increase sensitivity and perform-ance significantly. In combination with the high en-ergy resolution of the SDD it is possible to perform X-ray fluorescence analysis simultaneously to Mossbauer spectroscopy. In addition to the Fe-mineralogy, infor-mation on the sample's elemental composition will be gathered. The 2010 and 2012 field campaigns demonstrated that in-situ Mossbauer spectroscopy is an effective tool for both science and feedstock exploration and process monitoring. Engineering tests showed that a compact nickel metal hydride battery provided sufficient power for over 12 hr of continuous operation for the MIMOS instruments. Acknowledgment: Funded by german space agency DLR under contract 50 QX 0603 and 50QX0802. References: [1] I.L. ten Kate et al., in: J. Aerosp. Eng. 26 (2012) 183-196. [2] Klingelhofer et al., J. Geophys. Res. 108(E12) (2003), doi: 10.1029 / 2003JE002138. [3] Klingelhofer et al., Science 306 (2004), 1740-1745. [4] Morris et al., Science 305 (2004), 833-836. [5] Morris et al., J. Geophys. Res. 111 (2006), doi:10.1029/2006JE002791. [6] P. Lechner et al., Nucl. Instr. and Meth. A 377 (1996), 346-351. [7] M. Blumers et al., Nucl. Instr. and Meth. A