MINOR AND TRACE ELEMENT ENHANCEMENTS IDENTIFIED IN SUPERCAM LIBS DATA WITH SPECTRAL UNMIXING

Abstract

With the SuperCam instrument onboard NASA’s Perseverance rover, LIBS (laser-in�duced breakdown spectroscopy) data from Jezero crater is being obtained since the landing in February 2021 [1,2]. Spectral unmixing (SU) [3,4] provides a new and alternative way to analyze these data and to ob�tain semi-quantitative values for major and minor ele�ments. We apply the spectal unmixing to all data along the traverse and track variations in inferred elemental composition. In particular, for minor and trace elements, SU provides interesting insights into the locally vari�ating geochemistry and allows us to identify targets with remarkable enhancements. In this work, we present some selected results of the SU applied to SuperCam LIBS data with a focus on mi�nor element analysis such as the transition metals Ti, Cr, Mn, Ni, the two alkali earth metals Sr and Ba, and S and P as examples of nonmetallic elements.