A Miniature Extreme Environment Powder Delivery System (M-PoDS)

This innovation is a low mass, low volume, gas based system that will acquire size selective powdered samples from the extreme ambient (such as Mars or Venus surface). Then it will transfer and deliver samples to the analytical instrument(s) that are situated in a controlled environment such as a robotic or lander platform where measurements can be made. This research will further develop a miniature sample acquisition, transfer and delivery system that will enhance NASA's capability of studying the origin, evolution and distribution of life in the planets. This system has a compact-robust construction and consumes very low power with no moving parts, which make this system very reliable for extreme environmental applications. It is a pneumatically operated system and has great potential for using in-situ resource (e.g. concentrated CO2 on Mars) for the operations. Size selective precision sampling, low cross-contaminations, possibility of high temperature sterilization are many of the unique features of this system. Proper development of this innovation (in the course of Phase I, II and III) will be key for the astrobiological, resource allocations and geophysical investigations that are addressed in NASA's defined Mars and Venus science missions.