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Dr Mark Fox-Powell

Profile summary

  • Research Staff
  • Senior Lecturer
  • Faculty of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics
  • School of Environment, Earth & Ecosystem Sciences
  • mark.fox-powell

Professional biography

2023- present: Senior Lecturer, AstrobiologyOU, School of Environment, Earth and Ecosystem Sciences, Open University

2023: Senior Research Fellow, AstrobiologyOU, Open University

2020-2023: Research Fellow, AstrobiologyOU, Open University

2016-2019: Postdoctoral Research Fellow, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of St Andrews

2016: Research Assistant, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of St Andrews

2012-2016: PhD in Astrobiology, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Edinburgh

Research interests

My research interests centre around icy worlds in our Solar System that contain liquid water under their surfaces. These so-called 'ocean worlds' that include Jupiter's moons Europa and Ganymede, Saturn's moons Titan and Enceladus, and dwarf planets such as Ceres, may contain conditions suitable for life in the present day. I focus on how ice and salts delivered to the surfaces of these worlds by processes such as 'cryovolcanism' can be used to learn about the oceans far below.

Work in my team involves laboratory experiments and fieldwork to icy world analogue locations in Earth's high latitudes. We seek to understand how ocean chemistry and evidence of life might become delivered to and preserved at the surfaces of icy worlds. A major focus is on how the physical conditions in cryovolcanic eruptions (such as the extreme changes in temperature and pressure in the plumes of Enceladus) affects the erupted material. 

In the lab, we develop and employ novel cryo-analytical techniques to understand icy world materials at the molecular and micro-scale, and use planetary simulation facilities to relate our findings to the icy surfaces of ocean worlds. In the field, we study ice, brines and aerosols ejected from the subsurface in polar and sub-polar environments, including in Iceland, Svalbard and the Canadian High Arctic. Our findings help interpret existing data from missions such as Galileo and Cassini, and support upcoming missions such as the JUpiter Icy Moons Explorer (ESA) and the Europa Clipper (NASA). 

 

Recent research highlights

1. My team and I have developed new experimental and analytical techniques to study on the microscale how salty fluids behave as they freeze. We have used these approaches to identify the likely composition of ice grains emmitted in the plumes of Enceladus, and track how evidence of life might be captured or preserved within them. 

2. In ongoing work, we have identified chemical signatures of fast freezing that can become preserved within ice at icy worlds. These signatures could be used by upcoming missions to identify places at icy worlds where liquid from the subsurface has been rapidly delivered to space, by cryovolcanic process such as plumes. In a recent paper, we outlined some of these concepts we are now testing experimentally.

3. I have identifed Europa 'analogue' locations in the Canadian High Arctic, where supercold brines seep out to the surface, and form salts with similar chemical composition to those observed at Europa. This work has led to an extended research programme, with a range of talented UK and international colleagues, tracking how chemical and molecular traces of microbial life are preserved within the salts. This work helps to build the rationale for future missions that aim to directly seek evidence of life at icy worlds.

4. Working with an international team, we explored how liquid brines could be distributed vertically within Europa’s ice shell, and showed how this distribution affects the prospects for life within the ice. This work helps us to predict the depth at which habitable environments may be found in the present day, and has implications for protecting Europa from any Earthly contamination we might inadvertently bring on future spacecraft.

Publications

Is there H2O stacking disordered ice I in the Solar System? (2024-03-01)
Salzmann, Christoph G.; Murray, Benjamin J.; Fox-Powell, Mark G.; Hamp, Rachael E.; Rosu-Finsen, Alexander and Fraser, Helen
Icarus, 410, Article 115897

Molecular biosignatures in planetary analogue salts: implications for transport of organics in sulfate-rich brines beyond Earth (2024)
Moreras-Marti, A.; Fox-Powell, M.; Toney, J.; McAdam, A.C.; Slaymark, C.; Knudson, C.A.; Lewis, J.M.T.; Salik, M.A. and Cousins, C.R.
Geochemical Perspectives Letters, 32 (pp. 1-6)

Iron reduction as a viable metabolic pathway in Enceladus' ocean (2023)
Roche, Matthew J.; Fox-Powell, Mark G.; Hamp, Rachael E. and Byrne, James M.
International Journal of Astrobiology, 22(5) (pp. 539-558)

Brine Volume Fraction as a Habitability Metric for Europa's Ice Shell (2022-11-15)
Wolfenbarger, N. S.; Fox-Powell, M.G.; Buffo, J. J.; Soderlund, K. M. and Blankenship, D. D.
Geophysical Research Letters, 49, Article e2022GL100586(22)

Sulfur isotopes as biosignatures for Mars and Europa exploration (2022-11-04)
Moreras-Marti, A.; Fox-Powell, M.; Cousins, C. R.; Macey, M. C. and Zerkle, A.L.
Journal of the Geological Society, 179, Article jgs2021-134(6)

Compositional Controls on the Distribution of Brine in Europa’s Ice Shell (2022-09-14)
Wolfenbarger, N. S.; Fox-Powell, M. G.; Buffo, J. J.; Soderlund, K. M. and Blankenship, D. D.
Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, 127, Article e2022JE007305(9)

Sulfur Cycling as a Viable Metabolism under Simulated Noachian/Hesperian Chemistries (2022-04)
Oliver, James A.W.; Kelbrick, Matthew; Ramkissoon, Nisha K.; Dugdale, Amy; Stephens, Ben; Kucukkilic-Stephens, Ezgi; Fox-Powell, Mark G.; Schwenzer, Susanne P.; Antunes, André and Macey, Michael C.
Life, 12, Article 523(4)

Hunting for Life on Mars by Studying Life on Earth (2021-10)
Macey, Michael; Grand, Ann; Fox-Powell, Mark; Ramkissoon, Nisha; Cousins, Claire and Olsson-Francis, Karen
Frontiers for Young Minds, 9, Article 665929

Quadruple sulfur isotope biosignatures from terrestrial Mars analogue systems (2021-09-01)
Moreras-Marti, A.; Fox-Powell, M.; Stueeken, E.; Di Rocco, T.; Galloway, T.; Osinski, G. R.; Cousins, C. R. and Zerkle, A. L.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 308 (pp. 157-172)

Partitioning of Crystalline and Amorphous Phases During Freezing of Simulated Enceladus Ocean Fluids (2021-01)
Fox‐Powell, Mark G. and Cousins, Claire R.
Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, 126, Article e2020JE006628(1)

Volcanic controls on the microbial habitability of Mars‐analogue hydrothermal environments (2021)
Moreras‐Marti, Arola; Fox-Powell, Mark; Zerkle, Aubrey L.; Stueeken, Eva; Gazquez, Fernando; Brand, Helen E. A.; Galloway, Toni; Purkamo, Lotta and Cousins, Claire R.
Geobiology, 19(5) (pp. 489-509)

The identification of sulfide oxidation as a potential metabolism driving primary production on late Noachian Mars (2020)
Macey, M. C.; Fox-Powell, M.; Ramkissoon, N. K.; Stephens, B. P.; Barton, T.; Schwenzer, S. P.; Pearson, V. K.; Cousins, C. R. and Olsson-Francis, K.
Scientific reports, 10, Article 10941

Natural Analogue Constraints on Europa's Non-ice surface Material (2019-06-16)
Fox-Powell, Mark; Osinski, Gordon; Applin, Daniel; Stromberg, Jessica; Gázquez, Fernando; Cloutis, Ed; Allender, Elyse and Cousins, Claire
Geophysical Research Letters, 46(11) (pp. 5759-5767)

An Ionic Limit to Life in the Deep Subsurface (2019-03)
Payler, Samuel; Biddle, Jennifer; Sherwood Lollar, Barbara; Fox-Powell, Mark; Edwards, Thomas; Ngwenya, Bryne; Paling, Sean and Cockell, Charles
Frontiers in Microbiology, 10, Article 426

Cryogenic silicification of microorganisms in hydrothermal fluids (2018-09-15)
Fox-Powell, Mark; Channing, Alan; Applin, Daniel; Cloutis, Ed; Preston, Louisa and Cousins, Claire
Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 498 (pp. 1-8)

Building a Geochemical View of Microbial Salt Tolerance: Halophilic Adaptation of Marinococcus in a Natural Magnesium Sulfate Brine (2018)
Fox-Powell, Mark and Cockell, Charles
Frontiers in Microbiology, 9, Article 739

Ionic strength is a barrier to the habitability of Mars (2016-06-06)
Fox-Powell, Mark; Hallsworth, John; Cousins, Claire and Cockell, Charles
Astrobiology, 16(6) (pp. 427-442)

Multiplication of microbes below 0.690 water activity: implications for terrestrial and extraterrestrial life (2015-02)
Stevenson, Andrew; Burkhardt, Jürgen; Cockell, Charles S.; Cray, Jonathan A.; Dijksterhuis, Jan; Fox-Powell, Mark; Kee, Terence P.; Kminek, Gerhard; McGenity, Terry J.; Timmis, Kenneth N.; Timson, David J.; Voytek, Mary A.; Westall, Frances; Yakimov, Michail M. and Hallsworth, John E.
Environmental Microbiology, 17(2) (pp. 257-277)

Freezing behaviour of water droplets at the liquid-vacuum interface relevant to plume-forming regions on Enceladus (2024-06)
Hogan, Jessica; Fox-Powell, Mark; Hamp, Rachael; Merrison, Jonathan; Iverson, Jens Jacob; Patel, Manish and Pearson, Victoria
In : British Planetary Science Conference 2024 (19-21 Jun 2024, Leicester, UK)

Composition and Habitability of Europa’s Ocean Over Time (2024-01-11)
Sym, L. S. J.; Ramkissoon, N. K.; Fox-Powell, M. G.; Pearson, V. K. and Melwani Daswani, M.
In : 17th UK Planetary Forum Early Career Researcher Meeting (15 Jan 2024, London, UK)

Salt-Ice Grain Formation in the Enceladus Plume: A Combined Experimental and Remote Sensing Approach (2024-01)
Hogan, J; Fox-Powell, M; Hamp, R; Patel, M. R; Pearson, V and Cornet, T
In : 17th UKPF Early Career Researcher Meeting (15 Jan 2024, Imperial College, London)

Bubbles are rockets for microbes: predicting microbial dispersion in Enceladus’s plumes based on bubbling in Iceland’s geothermal springs. (2024)
Aldis, Angus; Fox-Powell, Mark; Gladding, Toni; Olsson-Francis, Karen and Stephens, Ben
In : UKPF 2024 Conference (15 Jan 2024, Imperial College London)

Composition and Habitability of Europa’s Ocean Over Time (2024)
Sym, Lewis; Ramkissoon, Nisha; Fox-Powell, Mark; Pearson, Victoria and Melwani Daswani, Mohit
In : Astrobiology Science Conference 2024 (05-10 May 2024, Providence, USA)

Microstructure controls longevity of exposed salt-rich ices on icy worlds (2024)
Chinnery, Hannah and Fox-Powell, Mark
In : 4th British Planetary Science Conference (17-21 Jun 2024, Leicester, UK)

Composition and Habitability of Europa’s Ocean Through Time (2023-09-07)
Sym, Lewis; Pearson, Victoria; Ramkissoon, Nisha; Fox-Powell, Mark and Melwani Daswani, Mohit
In : ASB9: Celebrating 20 Years of the Astrobiology Society of Britain (7-8 Sep 2023, Clore Management Centre, Birkbeck, University of London)

Modelling possible chemical evolution pathways during crystallisation and re-mobilisation of brines in Europa’s ice shell (2023)
Fox-Powell, Mark; Wolfenbarger, Natalie; Buffo, Jacob; Semprich, Julia and Ramkissoon, Nisha
In : Workshop on the Origins and Habitability of the Galilean Moons (24-26 Oct 2023, Marseille, France)

Insights into the origins and composition of cryovolcanic plume particles from natural and experimental analogues (2023)
Fox-Powell, Mark G.; Stephens, Ben; Siggs, Dominic; Barton, Timothy; Hammond, Sam; Kucukkilic-Stephens, Ezgi; Batty, Claire; Gladding, Toni and Olsson-Francis, Karen
In : Workshop on the Origins and Habitability of the Galilean Moons (24-26 Oct 2023, Marseille, France)

Geochemistry and microbiology of geothermal aerosols in Iceland: implications for biosignatures in the plumes of Enceladus (2023)
Fox-Powell, Mark; Stephens, Ben; Barton, Timothy; Hammond, Sam; Kucukkilic-Stephens, Ezgi; Batty, Claire; Gladding, Toni and Olsson-Francis, Karen
In : 9th Astrobiology Society of Britain conference (07-08 Sep 2023, Birkbeck, University of London)

Geochemistry and microbiology of geothermal aerosols in Iceland: implications for biosignatures in the plumes of Enceladus (2023)
Fox-Powell, Mark; Stephens, Ben; Batty, Claire; Gladding, Toni and Olsson-Francis, Karen
In : 54th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (13-17 Mar 2023, Houston, TX, USA)

Modelling possible chemical evolution pathways during freezing of Europa’s ice shell (2023)
Fox-Powell, Mark; Wolfenbarger, Natalie; Buffo, Jacob; Semprich, Julia and Ramkissoon, Nisha
In : 54th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (13-17 Mar 2023, Houston, TX, USA)

Entombment of microorganisms within rapidly frozen fluid droplets relevant to the plumes of Enceladus (2022)
Fox-Powell, Mark; Stephens, Ben; Del Moral Jimenez, Alvaro; Dazley, Connor; Slade, David; Richards, Grace; Cousins, Claire and Olsson-Francis, Karen
In : Forming and Exploring Habitable Worlds workshop (7-13 Nov 2022, Edinburgh, UK)

Entombment of microbial biomass within rapidly frozen fluid droplets relevant to the plumes of Enceladus (2022)
Fox-Powell, Mark; Stephens, Ben; Del Moral Jimenez, Alvaro; Dazley, Connor; Slade, David; Richards, Grace; Cousins, Claire and Olsson-Francis, Karen
In : Europlanet Science Congress 2022 (18-23 Sep 2022, Granada, Spain)

Experimentally probing the origin of Enceladus’s plume: bubble-bursting and aerosol formation at the liquid/vapour interface (2022)
Fox-Powell, Mark; Slade, David; Siggs, Dominic and Olsson-Francis, Karen
In : Europlanet Science Congress 2022 (18-23 Sep 2022, Granada, Spain)

Modelling water-rock interactions in the subsurface environment of Enceladus (2021-03)
Hamp, Rachael; Schwenzer, Susanne; Fox-Powell, Mark; Olsson-Francis, Karen and Pearson, Victoria
In : Lunar and Planetary Science Conference 2021 (Mar 2021, Houston, USA)

Brine evolution and transport-driven fractionation of ocean fluids within Europa’s icy shell (2021)
Fox-Powell, Mark; Buffo, Jacob; Wolfenbarger, Natalie; Semprich, Julia; Ramkissoon, Nisha; Vance, Steven; Schwenzer, Susanne and Pearson, Victoria
In : 52nd Lunar and Planetary Science Conference 2021 (15-19 Mar 2021, Online)

Colour Peak:An analogue environment for the waters of late Noachian Mars (2020-08-28)
Macey, Michael; Ramkissoon, Nisha; Fox-Powell, Mark; Barton, Tim; Stephens, Ben P.; Schwenzer, Susanne P.; Pearson, Victoria K.; Cousins, Claire R. and Olsson-Francis, Karen
In : EANA 2020 (27-28 Aug 2020, Online)

Colour Peak: An analogue environment for late Noachian Mars (2020)
Macey, Michael C.; Fox-Powell, Mark; Ramkissoon, Nisha K.; Stephens, Ben P.; Barton, Tim; Schwenzer, Susanne P.; Pearson, Victoria K.; Cousins, Claire R. and Olsson-Francis, Karen
In : Astrobiology Australasia Meeting (9-11 Sep 2020, Online)

The identification of sulfide oxidation as potential metabolism driving primary production on late Noachian Mars (2020)
Macey, Michael C; Fox-Powell, Mark; Ramkissoon, Nisha K; Baharier, Bea; Oliver, James A W; Stephens, Ben; Schwenzer, Susanne P; Pearson, Victoria K; Cousins, Claire R and Olsson-Francis, Karen
In : 52nd Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (15-19 Mar 2020 (Virtual), Houston, USA)

Cryovolcanic plumes as a record of habitability: Fluid evolution and the fate of bioessential elements during freezing of simulated Enceladus ocean brines (2020)
Fox-Powell, Mark; Hamp, Rachael; Schwenzer, Susanne; Pearson, Victoria; Olsson-Francis, Karen and Cousins, Claire
In : European Astrobiology Network Association (1-4 Sep 2020, Online)

Chemical fractionation in terrestrial geysers: implications for cryovolcanic plumes at ocean worlds
Fox-Powell, Mark G.; Stephens, Ben; Batty, Claire; Aldis, Angus; Hammond, Sam; Barton, Tim and Gladding, Toni
In : AbSciCon 2024 (5-10 May 2024, Providence, RI, USA)