Small grains from Ryugu: handling and analysis pipeline for infrared synchrotron microspectroscopy

Sample-return missions allow the study of materials collected directly from celestial bodies, unbiased by atmospheric entry effects and/or terrestrial alteration and contamination phenomena, using state-of-the-art techniques which are available only in a laboratory environment-but only if the collected material stays pristine. The scarcity of outer-space unaltered material recovered until now makes this material extremely precious for the potential scientific insight it can bring. To maximize the scientific output of current and future sample-return missions, the scientific community needs to plan for ways of storing, handling, and measuring this precious material while preserving their pristine state for as long as the 'invasiveness' of measurements allows. In July 2021, as part of the Hayabusa2 (JAXA) Stone preliminary examination team, we received several microscopic particles from the asteroid Ryugu, with the goal of performing IR hyper-spectral imaging and IR micro-tomography studies. Here, we describe the sample transfer, handling methods and analytical pipeline we implemented to study this very precious material while minimizing and surveilling their alteration history on Earth.

Automated summary

Sample-return missions allow for the study of unaltered materials from celestial bodies, providing valuable scientific insights. However, careful storage, handling, and measurement methods are necessary to preserve the pristine state of these precious samples. The described analytical pipeline and techniques used in studying microscopic particles from the asteroid Ryugu demonstrate efforts to minimize alteration while analyzing the material.