Document Type
Article
Publication Date
9-3-2025
Department
Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract
Field studies at terrestrial analogue sites represent an important contribution to the science of ocean worlds. The value of the science and technology investigations conducted at field analogue sites depends on the relevance of the analogue environment to the target ocean world. We accept that there are no perfect analogues for many of the unique environments represented by ocean worlds but suggest that a one-to-one matching of environmental characteristics and conditions is not crucial to the success or impact of the work. Instead, we must determine which processes and parameters are required to map directly to the target ocean world environment with high fidelity to address the science question. In this review paper, we discuss the outcomes of a workshop aimed at developing a new framework for evaluating the suitability of analogue field locations for ocean worlds research. Here we present a two-step approach to (a) identify the most crucial processes and parameters associated with a given science question and (b) assess the fidelity of these processes and parameters at a proposed field site to those expected for the target ocean world. We demonstrate this approach in a test case evaluating three types of ocean world analogue environments with respect to a science question. The consensus document presented here equips veteran and new investigators with valuable tools to better assess and justify their analogue site selections.
Publication Title
Journal of Geophysical Research Planets
Recommended Citation
Stern, J.,
Graham, H.,
Burcar, B.,
Martin, E.,
Noell, A.,
Hand, K.,
Bowman, J.,
Doran, P.,
Edgcomb, V.,
Holden, J.,
Howells, A.,
Malaska, M.,
Nunn, B.,
Radebaugh, J.,
Rodriguez, L.,
Borges, S.,
Bower, D.,
Courville, S.,
Diaz, M.,
Hockman, B.,
Huber, J.,
Lawrence, J.,
Vick-Majors, T.,
Nixon, C.,
Spear, J.,
Steckel, A.,
Solomonidou, A.,
Schmerr, N.,
Schmidt, B.,
Schrenk, M.,
&
Seyler, L.
(2025).
A Comprehensive Framework for Assessing Terrestrial Analogue Field Sites for Ocean Worlds.
Journal of Geophysical Research Planets,
130(9).
http://doi.org/10.1029/2024JE008803
Retrieved from: https://digitalcommons.mtu.edu/michigantech-p2/2012
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Version
Publisher's PDF
Publisher's Statement
© 2025 The Author(s). This article has been contributed to by U.S. Government employees and their work is in the public domain in the USA. Publisher’s version of record: https://doi.org/10.1029/2024JE008803