title: The Argyre Region as a Prime Target for in situ Astrobiological Exploration of Mars.
abstract: At the time before ∼3.5 Ga that life originated and began to spread on Earth, Mars was a wetter and more geologically dynamic planet than it is today. The Argyre basin, in the southern cratered highlands of Mars, formed from a giant impact at ∼3.93 Ga, which generated an enormous basin approximately 1800 km in diameter. The early post-impact environment of the Argyre basin possibly contained many of the ingredients that are thought to be necessary for life: abundant and long-lived liquid water, biogenic elements, and energy sources, all of which would have supported a regional environment favorable for the origin and the persistence of life. We discuss the astrobiological significance of some landscape features and terrain types in the Argyre region that are promising and accessible sites for astrobiological exploration. These include (i) deposits related to the hydrothermal activity associated with the Argyre impact event, subsequent impacts, and those associated with the migration of heated water along Argyre-induced basement structures; (ii) constructs along the floor of the basin that could mark venting of volatiles, possibly related to the development of mud volcanoes; (iii) features interpreted as ice-cored mounds (open-system pingos), whose origin and development could be the result of deeply seated groundwater upwelling to the surface; (iv) sedimentary deposits related to the formation of glaciers along the basin's margins, such as evidenced by the ridges interpreted to be eskers on the basin floor; (v) sedimentary deposits related to the formation of lakes in both the primary Argyre basin and other smaller impact-derived basins along the margin, including those in the highly degraded rim materials; and (vi) crater-wall gullies, whose morphology points to a structural origin and discharge of (wet) flows.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Planetology and Habitability, Centro de Astrobiología (CSIC-INTA) , Madrid, Spain .|2 Department of Astronomy, Cornell University , Ithaca, New York, USA .
authors.forename: Alberto G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Fairén
authors.affiliation: 3 The University Museum, The University of Tokyo , Tokyo, Japan .
authors.forename: James M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Dohm
authors.affiliation: 4 Planetary Science Institute , Tucson, Arizona, USA .
authors.forename: J Alexis P
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Rodríguez
authors.affiliation: 5 Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid , Madrid, Spain .
authors.forename: Esther R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Uceda
authors.affiliation: 6 Department of Hydrology and Water Resources, University of Arizona , Tucson, Arizona, USA .
authors.forename: Jeffrey
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kargel
authors.affiliation: 7 Department of Geography, Dawson College , Montreal, Canada .
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Soare
authors.affiliation: 8 Earth-Life Science Institute, Tokyo Institute of Technology , Tokyo, Japan .|9 The Institute for Advanced Study , Princeton, New Jersey, USA .
authors.forename: H James
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Cleaves
authors.affiliation: 10 Jacobs/LZ Technology, JETS Contract, NASA Johnson Space Center , Houston, Texas, USA .
authors.forename: Dorothy
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Oehler
authors.affiliation: 11 Center of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Technical University Berlin , Berlin, Germany .|12 School of the Environment, Washington State University , Pullman, Washington, USA .
authors.forename: Dirk
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Schulze-Makuch
authors.affiliation: 13 Higher Institute of Applied Sciences and Technology, University of Gabes , Gabes, Tunisia .
authors.forename: Elhoucine
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Essefi
authors.affiliation: 4 Planetary Science Institute , Tucson, Arizona, USA .|14 Smithsonian Institution, National Air and Space Museum, Center for Earth and Planetary Studies , Washington, DC, USA .
authors.forename: Maria E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Banks
authors.affiliation: 15 International Research School of Planetary Sciences, Università d'Annunzio , Pescara, Italy .
authors.forename: Goro
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Komatsu
authors.affiliation: 16 College of Engineering, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Arizona , Tucson, Arizona, USA .|17 Division of Physics, Mathematics and Astronomy, California Institute of Technology , Pasadena, California, USA .
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Fink
authors.affiliation: 18 Southwest Research Institute , Boulder, Colorado, USA .
authors.forename: Stuart
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Robbins
authors.affiliation: 19 RISE Project Office, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan , Oshu, Japan .
authors.forename: Jianguo
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.affiliation: 3 The University Museum, The University of Tokyo , Tokyo, Japan .
authors.forename: Hideaki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Miyamoto
authors.affiliation: 8 Earth-Life Science Institute, Tokyo Institute of Technology , Tokyo, Japan .
authors.forename: Shigenori
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Maruyama
authors.affiliation: 6 Department of Hydrology and Water Resources, University of Arizona , Tucson, Arizona, USA .
authors.forename: Victor R
authors.initials: VR
authors.lastname: Baker
mesh_terms: D018559:Exobiology; D005118:Extraterrestrial Environment; D005844:Geology; D018535:Mars; D012371:Robotics; D014835:Volatilization; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D014867:Water