Sampling of palaeo-water and biomolecules from surface deposits on Mars

Fluid inclusions entrapped in mineral cements and healed microfractures represent an important source of information on the ambient environment during mineral precipitation. This includes minerals precipitated in relatively low-temperature, surficial environments, which have been identified as targets for exploration for life on the Martian surface. As inclusion fluids are sealed from alteration, they preserve a record of the environment at a time when water was present. The most direct value of inclusions would be in biomolecular signatures in aqueous fluids, or physical remains of micro-organisms held in the fluids. High-resolution sensing techniques for organic molecules could analyse inclusion fluids released in situ on Mars or from returned samples.