{
  "abstract": "Surface dust poses a fundamental challenge to extraterrestrial human exploration, a reality demonstrated by the operational hazards encountered during Apollo lunar missions. On Mars, this challenge is compounded by regional and global dust cycles that coat sensitive hardware. While previous Mars missions have constrained the bulk geochemistry of coarser particulates (≳3 µm), the properties of the fine (≲2.5 µm) and ultrafine (≲0.1 µm) fractions remain largely uncharacterized. This knowledge gap is critical as these respirable particles, defined by their ability to bypass upper respiratory defenses, possess the mobility to penetrate deep into the alveolar regions of biological systems, presenting a systemic toxicity risk to future crews. Here, we report on direct examination of these fine and ultrafine Martian dust fractions using X-ray fluorescence through the analysis and modeling of data acquired by the Perseverance rover. We observe particulates measuring as small as 100 to 200 nm on spacesuit samples and calibration targets. Compositionally, this dust is a phosphorus-, iron-, and sulfur-enriched mafic silicate accumulating on materials analogous to the planned external layers of potential crew systems. Our results emphasize the importance of a thorough characterization of Martian dust properties in terrestrial laboratories to better prepare future crews and crew support systems destined for the surface of Mars.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences, Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130",
    "Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science Division, NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX 77058",
    "Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109",
    "Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton T6G 2E3, AB, Canada",
    "JETS II Contract, Amentum at NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX 77058",
    "Space Science Institute, Boulder, CO 80301",
    "Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907",
    "Applied Physics Laboratory, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98105",
    "Department of Geoscience, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV 89154",
    "Haystack Observatory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Westford, MA 01886",
    "Department of Geosciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794",
    "Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, MD 20723",
    "School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane 4000, QLD, Australia",
    "Departamento de Instrumentación Avanzada, Centro de Astrobiología (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas - Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial), Madrid 28850, Spain",
    "Department of Earth Sciences, Brock University, St. Catharines L2S 3A1, ON, Canada",
    "Research Institutes of Sweden, Stockholm 114 28, Sweden",
    "Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Science, Washington, DC 20015",
    "Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ 85719",
    "School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287",
    "Mineral Resources, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Waite Campus 5064, SA, Australia",
    "Department of Geology and Geophysics, Texas Agricultural and Mechanical University, College Station, TX 77843"
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 35,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Scott J. VanBommel",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-6565-0827"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Abigail L. Knight",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-6832-8190"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Andrea D. Harrington",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-4875-3637"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Sydney Do"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Christopher D. K. Herd",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-5210-4002"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Yang Liu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4
      ],
      "name": "Jeff A. Berger",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-0380-4683"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5
      ],
      "name": "Benton C. Clark",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-5546-8757"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        6
      ],
      "name": "Steph A. Connell"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        7
      ],
      "name": "William T. Elam",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-4609-8288"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        8
      ],
      "name": "Elisabeth M. Hausrath"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        9
      ],
      "name": "Michael H. Hecht",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-4114-4583"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        10
      ],
      "name": "Joel A. Hurowitz",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-5857-8652"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        11
      ],
      "name": "Jeffrey R. Johnson"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        12
      ],
      "name": "Michael W. M. Jones"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Rachel I. Kenney"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        13
      ],
      "name": "Germán M. Martínez"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Chaz N. Morantz"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        14
      ],
      "name": "Mariek E. Schmidt"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        7
      ],
      "name": "Andrew O. Shumway"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        15
      ],
      "name": "Sandra M. Siljeström"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        16
      ],
      "name": "Andrew Steele"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Kyle Uckert",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-0859-5526"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Lawrence A. Wade",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-8254-8181"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        17
      ],
      "name": "R. Aileen Yingst"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Abigail C. Allwood"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        18
      ],
      "name": "James F. Bell"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        17
      ],
      "name": "Morgan L. Cable"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        18
      ],
      "name": "Tasha Coelho",
      "orcid": "0009-0000-5890-0245"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        12
      ],
      "name": "David T. Flannery",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-8982-496X"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        19
      ],
      "name": "Brianna Ganly"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Nicholas Tallarida"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        20
      ],
      "name": "Michael M. Tice",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-2560-1702"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Jason K. Van Beek"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        13
      ],
      "name": "Álvaro Vicente-Retortillo",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-4553-7624"
    }
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  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/4dfs7r30b5m6e.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1073/pnas.2620747123",
  "fulltext_url": "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13732058/",
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    "0027-8424",
    "1091-6490"
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  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2620747123",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC-ND-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC-ND 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/",
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  "native_subjects": [
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    [
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    [
      "heading",
      "Biological Sciences"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences"
    ],
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      "heading",
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      "heading",
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  "pmcid": "PMC13732058",
  "pmid": "42932651",
  "published": "2026-10-26",
  "publisher": "National Academy of Sciences",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/4dfs7r30b5m6e.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-08T12:22:07Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13732058",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2620747123"
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  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "astronomy",
      "origin": "openalex:1912|Planetary Science and Exploration",
      "subfield": "planetary"
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  ],
  "title": "Fine and ultrafine Martian dust presents additional risks for future crewed missions to Mars",
  "title_text": "Fine and ultrafine Martian dust presents additional risks for future crewed missions to Mars",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-08T12:22:07Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/4dfs7r30b5m6e",
  "venue": "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America",
  "versions": []
}