Matthew Svensson - Instrumentation for Exploring the Geology of Earth and Mars

Matthew Svensson, Ph.D.

Geologist, GeologicAI

Talk Abstract:

From mineral exploration to interplanetary missions, field-portable and remotely operated analytical instrumentation has dramatically changed the way we conduct geosciences. Some of these analytical systems found their earliest geological applications in high-stakes programs to explore the history of Mars on board NASA’s rovers. Today, NASA’s Perseverance Rover uses visible to infrared spectroscopy (Vis-IR), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), and other instruments to search for geological evidence of ancient life at Jezero Crater. The Perseverance rover partially serves as a ground-truthing tool for orbital Vis-IR data, which was collected by the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer (CRISM) mounted on board the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter satellite (MRO). Prior to rover-based exploration of Jezero, CRISM data showed a carbonate bearing unit at Jezero Crater had notable spectral diversity and was stratigraphically correlated with deltaic deposits. These observations were invoked to suggest a lacustrine origin of these carbonates. In this presentation, we will explore how the rover operations that followed have advanced this discussion, and how the rover’s instruments have been used conjointly to reconstruct the possible fluviolacustrine history of Jezero Crater.

Speaker Bio:

Dr. Matthew Svensson is a geologist and planetary scientist whose Ph.D. and postdoctoral research were focused on the impact cratering process and the nature of the rocks and minerals that it creates on the Earth, moon, and Mars. His doctoral research emphasized clay mineralogy and instrumentation relevant to human and robotic geological surveys, including X-ray diffraction, X-ray fluorescence, visible to near-infrared (Vis-IR) spectroscopy, and laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS). Matthew now applies this experience to the core-scanning industry as a geologist for Geologic-AI, where he is responsible for managing mineral map production from Vis-IR data and for advancing new applications. Outside of Geologic AI, he contributes as a Co-Investigator on research developing the applications of the Enfys Vis-IR spectrometer, a hyperspectral instrument to be deployed on the European Space Agency’s Rosalind Franklin ExoMars Rover. Matthew believes that Canada has an integral role in the future of space exploration and Earth’s natural resource development, and his career is dedicated to advancing these fields.

Matthew Svensson | LinkedIn

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