title: The O/OREOS mission: first science data from the space environment viability of organics (SEVO) payload.
abstract: We report the first science results from the Space Environment Viability of Organics (SEVO) payload aboard the Organism/Organic Exposure to Orbital Stresses (O/OREOS) free-flying nanosatellite, which completed its nominal spaceflight mission in May 2011 but continues to acquire data biweekly. The SEVO payload integrates a compact UV-visible-NIR spectrometer, utilizing the Sun as its light source, with a 24-cell sample carousel that houses four classes of vacuum-deposited organic thin films: polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), amino acid, metalloporphyrin, and quinone. The organic films are enclosed in hermetically sealed sample cells that contain one of four astrobiologically relevant microenvironments. Results are reported in this paper for the first 309 days of the mission, during which the samples were exposed for ∼2210 h to direct solar illumination (∼1080 kJ/cm(2) of solar energy over the 124-2600 nm range). Transmission spectra (200-1000 nm) were recorded for each film, at first daily and subsequently every 15 days, along with a solar spectrum and the dark response of the detector array. Results presented here include eight preflight and 16 in-flight spectra of eight SEVO sample cells. Spectra from the PAH thin film in a water-vapor-containing microenvironment indicate measurable change due to solar irradiation in orbit, while three other nominally water-free microenvironments show no appreciable change. The quinone anthrarufin showed high photostability and no significant spectroscopically measurable change in any of the four microenvironments during the same period. The SEVO experiment provides the first in situ real-time analysis of the photostability of organic compounds and biomarkers in orbit.
authors.affiliation: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, USA. andrew.mattioda@nasa.gov
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mattioda
authors.forename: Amanda
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cook
authors.forename: Pascale
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ehrenfreund
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Quinn
authors.forename: Antonio J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Ricco
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Squires
authors.forename: Nathan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bramall
authors.forename: Kathryn
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bryson
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chittenden
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Minelli
authors.forename: Elwood
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Agasid
authors.forename: Lou
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Allamandola
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Beasley
authors.forename: Roland
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Burton
authors.forename: Greg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Defouw
authors.forename: Millan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Diaz-Aguado
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fonda
authors.forename: Charles
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Friedericks
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kitts
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Landis
authors.forename: Mike
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: McIntyre
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Neumann
authors.forename: Mike
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rasay
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ricks
authors.forename: Farid
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Salama
authors.forename: Orlando
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.forename: Aaron
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Schooley
authors.forename: Bruce
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Yost
authors.forename: Anthony
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Young
mesh_terms: D000596:Amino Acids / Q000737:chemistry; D016227:Benzoquinones / Q000737:chemistry; D005118:Extraterrestrial Environment; D008665:Metalloporphyrins / Q000737:chemistry; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / Q000032:analysis; D013026:Space Flight; D013057:Spectrum Analysis; D014466:Ultraviolet Rays
chemical_list: D000596:Amino Acids; D016227:Benzoquinones; D008665:Metalloporphyrins; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons; C004532:quinone