NASAさんのインスタグラム写真 - (NASAInstagram)「An analog environment “Hello, I’m Conor Nixon, a research scientist and field team lead here at Goddard. “So, what is an analog environment? It’s somewhere on the Earth that has similarities to a space environment that may be difficult to reach and study directly. We were looking for an analog to Enceladus (shown in the first picture), the sixth-largest moon of Saturn and mostly covered by fresh, clean ice, making it one of the most reflective bodies of the solar system. “The second picture shows the Great Fountain Geyser in Yellowstone National Park, which is our analog to the geysers that we see in space on Enceladus. By researching an analog environment, we hope to learn more about what may be going on in the space environment, and also how to better design experiments for future missions that will eventually go to the destination. “The final photo shows our team deep in Yellowstone National Park in mid-winter at the geyser site. Our experiments in Yellowstone were designed to see what microbial life exists in the geysers, and to measure the water conditions such as temperature, acidity and oxygen content that the microbes prefer. We also wanted to measure the conditions surrounding the vent on the icy surface to see if life might be detected there also. These measurements gave us valuable data that could be used to design a future mission to land on Enceladus’ surface, or fly through its plumes in space to search for life. “Field work is a fun break from working indoors in an office or laboratory. It promotes teamwork and leadership skills, problem solving (ask me about our truck getting stuck in a snow drift!) and new thinking and ideas from the experience of being in a new environment. We all came back from our field experience in Yellowstone not only with loads of useful data, but also with our heads filled with new science ideas and directions. We can’t wait to go back!” #oceanworlds #nasa」8月22日 22時20分