Solar System: Development of Protocols and Techniques for Analysis of Planetary Materials and Analogs Using Laser Mass Spectrometry

The NASA Postdoctoral Program (NPP) offers unique research opportunities to highly-talented scientists to engage in ongoing NASA research projects at a NASA Center, NASA Headquarters, or at a NASA-affiliated research institute. These one- to three-year fellowships are competitive and are designed to advance NASA's missions in space science, Earth science, aeronautics, space operations, exploration systems, and astrobiology. This specific opportunity invites proposals that focus on developing novel approaches, techniques, and protocols for analyzing the chemical, organic, and isotopic composition of planetary materials using laser mass spectrometry along with associated or complementary techniques. Research topics include development and testing of novel laser-based ion sources and analytical protocols for mass spectrometers, analysis of complex non-volatile organics in natural and synthetic analog samples, and application of pulsed laser irradiation to simulate hypervelocity impact plasma chemical synthesis. Studies should address elements of the NASA Astrobiology roadmap or supporting science for current and future missions analyzing surface samples on Mars, Titan, Enceladus, and Europa.