Physicochemical context synthesis for the MASE Mars analogue sites

MASE (Mars Analogues for Space Exploration) is a four year collaborative research project supported by an EC FP7 contract. Its aim is to understand how combined environmental stresses affect the habitability of a number of Mars analogue environments on Earth, specifically for anaerobic organisms. Crucial to assessing the habitability of any environmental system is a detailed understanding of the geological, physiochemical and biological context in which the environment is set. One of the key outcomes of MASE is a comparison and synthesis of just such a collection of context data from a varied set of Mars analogue sites.