The Open University is sending researchers to the Moon, Venus, Mercury, asteroids, and the icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn—all without leaving the lab. This programme tackles a single, fundamental question: how did the Solar System form, and is Earth the only place where life arose? The researchers will analyse lunar volatiles to understand the Moon’s origin and support future human exploration, decode the formation of chondrules in primitive meteorites, and trace organic compounds in carbonaceous chondrites to determine whether life’s building blocks came from interstellar space or the early Solar System. They will also use deep learning to map lunar impact craters, model Venusian atmospheric chemistry to test for active volcanoes, and simulate subsurface conditions on Europa and Enceladus to identify biosignatures that could indicate alien life. This is pure fundamental science—it does not promise a new battery or a faster computer. But the analytical techniques developed here, from space instrumentation to machine learning, already find applications in medicine, security, and cosmetics. More importantly, the programme trains and inspires the next generation of planetary scientists and engineers.
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Our proposed research programme studies the origin and evolution of the Solar System, including surfaces, atmospheres and physical, geological, chemical and biological processes, in a range of projects which address the STFC Science Roadmap challenge B: "How do stars and planetary systems develop and is life unique to our planet?" The inner rocky bodies of the Solar System are of particular importance in understanding planetary system evolution, because of their common origin within the protoplanetary disk, but subsequent divergent histories. We propose projects to study all extra-terrestrial rocky objects in the inner Solar System (Mercury, Venus, the Moon, asteroids, meteorites and interplanetary dust), with the exception of Mars, which is funded through the UK Space Agency's Aurora programme. The question of whether Earth is a unique location for life in the Solar System remains one of the most enduring questions of our time. We propose projects to investigate microbiological environments in impact craters and the icy satellites of the giant planets. Project A investigates the abundance, composition, sources and evolution of volatiles in the Moon, which are of importance for understanding the Moon's origin and their key role for in-situ resource utilisation for future lunar exploration. Project B aims to identify the mechanisms and locations of the formation of chondrules (small, spherical silicate objects predominant in primitive meteorites that retain information about the earliest stages of the planetary formation process). Project C will study carbon compounds in primitive carbonaceous chondrite meteorites, to investigate whether primordial organic material was produced in the interstellar medium or the protoplanetary disk. Project D addresses the challenge of exploitation of massive, high-resolution planetary imaging data sets, by using a deep-learning system to investigate the properties of lunar impact craters, and test the effectiveness and wider applicability of such tools for planetary surface analysis. Project E uses a combination of observations and global climate modelling to investigate how trace gas species are transported through the atmosphere of Venus and hence determine whether the variations of sulfur dioxide can be attributed to active volcanic processes. Project F uses NASA MESSENGER mission data to map and interpret the geology of Mercury's poorly observed south polar region, which exhibits crustal evolution features appartently different from the north polar region, and prepare for ESA's BepiColombo mission. Project G involves a search for the effects of the YORP effect (non-uniform emission of heat and scattering of sunlight) a mechanism for spin changes, mobility of surface material, mass loss and asteroid binary and pair production. Project H aims to determine the conditions in the subsurface of an impact crater site and which bio-signatures could be used as evidence for whether post-impact hydrothermal systems drive habitability on young terrestrial planets. Project K aims to determine whether life could produce unique bio-signatures within the sub-surface oceans of Europa and Enceladus using laboratory simulation experiments and geochemical modelling. In addition to satisfying humanity's innate desire to explore and understand the Universe around us, our research has more tangible benefits. We use the analytical techniques involved from development of space and laboratory instrumentation for applications with companies in fields as diverse as medicine, security, tourism and cosmetics. One of the most important benefits of our research is that it helps to train and inspire students - the next generation of scientists and engineers - through training within the University, public and schools' outreach, and through individual programmes and whole series resulting from the University's unique relationship with the BBC.
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