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The Atacama Desert in Chile
Cave Exploration Yields Surprising Discovery
August 03, 2008 08:01 AM
A research team practicing to search for caves on Mars has found an unexpected surprise on Earth: water.
30-Second Summary
While exploring a cave in the hot, extremely dry Atacama Desert in Chile, scientists made an intriguing discovery. They found water in a place that receives one millimeter of rain a year.
“So nobody was looking for water,” LiveScience explains.
In fact, the scientists were practicing finding caves on Earth in preparation for searching out caves on Mars. They believe Martian caves could contain signs of life.
One researcher says there are considerable similarities between the Atacama Desert and Mars. “The Atacama Desert and the dry valleys of Antarctica are where Earth meets Mars,” explained Ronald Amundson, a professor of ecosystem sciences with UC Berkeley. “I would argue that Mars has more in common geochemically with these climate extremes on Earth than these sites have in common with the rest of our planet.”
The search for life on Mars has sped up in recent months. The Phoenix Mars Lander recently collected ice from the Red Planet. “Water is considered a prerequisite for life as we know it,” stated LiveScience.
Scientists will continue their cave research through 2010, and conduct a similar program in California’s Mojave Desert.
“So nobody was looking for water,” LiveScience explains.
In fact, the scientists were practicing finding caves on Earth in preparation for searching out caves on Mars. They believe Martian caves could contain signs of life.
One researcher says there are considerable similarities between the Atacama Desert and Mars. “The Atacama Desert and the dry valleys of Antarctica are where Earth meets Mars,” explained Ronald Amundson, a professor of ecosystem sciences with UC Berkeley. “I would argue that Mars has more in common geochemically with these climate extremes on Earth than these sites have in common with the rest of our planet.”
The search for life on Mars has sped up in recent months. The Phoenix Mars Lander recently collected ice from the Red Planet. “Water is considered a prerequisite for life as we know it,” stated LiveScience.
Scientists will continue their cave research through 2010, and conduct a similar program in California’s Mojave Desert.
Headline Link: ‘Incredible Discoveries Made in Remote Caves’
To find caves on Mars, scientists are searching for caves on Earth using thermal infrared imagery, said J. Judson Wynne, a cave expert. NASA is funding the research, which involves determining what a cave looks like in infrared. Researchers are also evaluating what time of day makes “heat signatures” best for cave hunting. “Martian caves have already been detected through techniques developed by this project,” said Dan Ruby, associate director of Fleischmann Planetarium and Science Center in Reno.
Source: LiveScience
Background: NASA rover lands on Mars
On Jan. 25, 2004, the NASA rover Opportunity joined its twin, Spirit, on the surface of Mars. Although Spirit had trouble earlier that week, communication was re-established and scientists celebrated both successes.
Source: findingDulcinea
Analysis: Will we ever discover life on Mars?
NASA’s Mars Phoenix Lander successfully drilled into the “rock-hard ice layer below the Martian surface” and collected an ice sample on July 16, Space.com reported.
Source: Space.com
In light of the Phoenix Lander ice discovery, LiveScience explores the possibility of finding definitive evidence of life on Mars, and the circumstances and tools that would make the discovery possible. “Getting to that answer will require the right mission with the right tools in the right places—not to mention some serious digging beyond the capabilities of Phoenix,” writes Jeremy Hsu.
Source: LiveScience
Related Topics: Water on Mars and the moon
A new study led by scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, suggests that Mars once had enough water on it for “a light drizzle or dew to hit the ground,” according to Mars Daily. The planet isn’t “radically different than Earth,” said Ronald Amundson, professor of ecosystem sciences at UC Berkeley.
Source: Mars Daily
By studying new images of Mars, researchers have determined that the planet may once have been covered in “benign seas” suitable for life.
Source: findingDulcinea
In July 2008, a research team discovered evidence of water that came from deep within the moon, contained in lunar volcanic glass.
Source: findingDulcinea
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