Peer-reviewedCC BY-NC-ND 4.0Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Fine and ultrafine Martian dust presents additional risks for future crewed missions to Mars
21 affiliations
- 1McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences, Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130
- 2Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science Division, NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX 77058
- 3Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109
- 4Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton T6G 2E3, AB, Canada
- 5JETS II Contract, Amentum at NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX 77058
- 6Space Science Institute, Boulder, CO 80301
- 7Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907
- 8Applied Physics Laboratory, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98105
- 9Department of Geoscience, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV 89154
- 10Haystack Observatory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Westford, MA 01886
- 11Department of Geosciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794
- 12Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, MD 20723
- 13School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane 4000, QLD, Australia
- 14Departamento de Instrumentación Avanzada, Centro de Astrobiología (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas - Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial), Madrid 28850, Spain
- 15Department of Earth Sciences, Brock University, St. Catharines L2S 3A1, ON, Canada
- 16Research Institutes of Sweden, Stockholm 114 28, Sweden
- 17Earth and Planets Laboratory, Carnegie Science, Washington, DC 20015
- 18Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ 85719
- 19School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287
- 20Mineral Resources, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Waite Campus 5064, SA, Australia
- 21Department of Geology and Geophysics, Texas Agricultural and Mechanical University, College Station, TX 77843
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.
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BibTeX
@article{vanbommel2026fine,
title = {{Fine and ultrafine Martian dust presents additional risks for future crewed missions to Mars}},
author = {Scott J. VanBommel and Abigail L. Knight and Andrea D. Harrington and Sydney Do and Christopher D. K. Herd and Yang Liu and Jeff A. Berger and Benton C. Clark and Steph A. Connell and William T. Elam and Elisabeth M. Hausrath and Michael H. Hecht and Joel A. Hurowitz and Jeffrey R. Johnson and Michael W. M. Jones and Rachel I. Kenney and Germán M. Martínez and Chaz N. Morantz and Mariek E. Schmidt and Andrew O. Shumway and Sandra M. Siljeström and Andrew Steele and Kyle Uckert and Lawrence A. Wade and R. Aileen Yingst and Abigail C. Allwood and James F. Bell and Morgan L. Cable and Tasha Coelho and David T. Flannery and Brianna Ganly and Nicholas Tallarida and Michael M. Tice and Jason K. Van Beek and Álvaro Vicente-Retortillo},
journal = {Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1073/pnas.2620747123},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2620747123},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Fine and ultrafine Martian dust presents additional risks for future crewed missions to Mars
AU - Scott J. VanBommel
AU - Abigail L. Knight
AU - Andrea D. Harrington
AU - Sydney Do
AU - Christopher D. K. Herd
AU - Yang Liu
AU - Jeff A. Berger
AU - Benton C. Clark
AU - Steph A. Connell
AU - William T. Elam
AU - Elisabeth M. Hausrath
AU - Michael H. Hecht
AU - Joel A. Hurowitz
AU - Jeffrey R. Johnson
AU - Michael W. M. Jones
AU - Rachel I. Kenney
AU - Germán M. Martínez
AU - Chaz N. Morantz
AU - Mariek E. Schmidt
AU - Andrew O. Shumway
AU - Sandra M. Siljeström
AU - Andrew Steele
AU - Kyle Uckert
AU - Lawrence A. Wade
AU - R. Aileen Yingst
AU - Abigail C. Allwood
AU - James F. Bell
AU - Morgan L. Cable
AU - Tasha Coelho
AU - David T. Flannery
AU - Brianna Ganly
AU - Nicholas Tallarida
AU - Michael M. Tice
AU - Jason K. Van Beek
AU - Álvaro Vicente-Retortillo
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/26
JO - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
DO - 10.1073/pnas.2620747123
UR - https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2620747123
AB - 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.
SN - 0027-8424
SN - 1091-6490
ER -