During 2007, Staid continued geologic studies of the Moon and Mars through the analysis of visible to near-infrared and thermal emission spectroscopic data. Lunar research includes an investigation of the Moon's ancient volcanic deposits supported by NASA's Planetary Geology and Geophysics Program. This study combines the detailed spectral information and precise calibrations of U.S. Geological Survey's Robotic Lunar Observatory (ROLO) with higher spatial, but lower spectral resolution data from the Clementine mission to constrain the mineralogy of the lunar maria. Results from this study have provided new information about the mineralogy of unsampled lunar basalts, including the last major phases of lunar volcanism and ancient, very low titanium deposits outside of the major nearside basins. Reflectance data from these studies are also being used to develop new photometric models for future lunar imaging missions.
A major effort by Dr. Staid over the past year has involved preparations for NASA's Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) instrument as a member of the M3 Science Team. M3 is an advanced imaging spectrometer built by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory to characterize and map the mineral composition of the Moon. M3 will be launched on India's first lunar mission, Chandrayaan-1, as a NASA Discovery Mission of Opportunity in 2008. As a Co-I on this mission, Staid is the science lead for investigations of lunar basalts and mare volcanism. Efforts during 2007 have focused on identifying priority targets for science investigations and developing plans for related data analyses. Staid has also assisting the development of lunar photometric models for M3 calibrations and has analyzed data for mission planning and instrument calibration activities. During 2007, Staid represented the M3 Science Team at a Chandrayaan-1 team meeting in Bangalore, India where he worked with other instrument teams to develop plans for science investigations and on-orbit calibrations.
Other on-going work includes geologic studies of Mars through the mapping of surface mineralogy. This research involves application of spectral mixing algorithms for the mineralogical analysis of MGS Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) data, laboratory measurements of Mars analogs and PanCam data acquired by the Mars Exploration Rovers. These collaborations have resulted in two current publications led by Dr. Jeffrey Johnson of the U.S. Geological survey and another paper currently in press on hematite deposits in Valles Marineris led by Dr. Cathy Weitz at PSI.
Johnson, J.R., M.I. Staid, and M.D. Kraft (2007), Thermal infrared spectroscopy and modeling of experimentally shocked basalts, American Mineralogist, July, 2007; v. 92; no. 7, p. 1148-1157; DOI: 10.2138/am.2007.2356.
Johnson, J.R., J.F. Bell, III, E. Cloutis, M. Staid, W.H. Farrand, T. McCoy, M. Rice, A. Wang, and A. Yen (2007), Mineralogic constraints on sulfer-rich soils from Pancam spectra at Gusev crater, Mars, Geophys. Res. Lett., 34, L13202, doi:10.1029/2007GL029894.
Staid, M.I. and T. C. Stone, 2007. Remote Sensing of Lunar Basalts Using ROLO Telescopic Data and Clementine Images, Lunar and Planet. Sci. Conf. 38th, no. 1951.
Pieters, C. M., J. Boardman, B. Buratti, R. Clark, R. Green, J. W. Head, S. Lundeen, E. Malaret, T. B. McCord, J. Mustard, C. Runyon, M. Staid, J. Sunshine, L. Taylor, S. Tompkins 2006, Padma Varanasi. M3 on Chandrayaan-1: Strategy for Mineral Assessment of the Moon. Lunar and Planet. Sci. Conf. 38th, no. 1295.
Johnson, J.R., P.G. Lucey, T.C. Stone, M.I. Staid, 2007, Visible/Near-infrared remote sensing of Earth from the Moon, Workshop on Science Associated with the Lunar Exploration Architecture, Tempe, AZ.