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Image of Mars taken by NASA's Hubble
Space Telescope.
Image of Mars taken by NASA's Hubble
Space Telescope.
Mars’s Ancient Waters May Have Supported Life
July 17, 2008 05:22 PM
By studying new images of Mars, researchers have determined that the planet may once have been covered in “benign seas” suitable for life.
30-Second Summary
A team from Brown University studied data returned by the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars, which is designed to find traces of minerals that interact with water, Wired reports.
In a paper published this week in the journal Nature, the researchers suggest that Mars may have been mostly covered in water during the planet’s first 600 million–700 million years.
Most importantly, the water may have been temperate enough to support life. The Phoenix Mars Lander recently collected ice from the Red Planet and, on the opposite end of the thermometer, scientists have hypothesized in the past that if water existed on Mars, it would have been far too hot for living creatures.
But the new images show deposits of claylike minerals that form at relatively low temperatures, meaning “benign seas” that could have hosted these minerals—and, possibly, life—may have once existed on the planet’s surface, according to Wired.
“I think the prospects for present life were dim, but for past life, during this habitable era, they were really quite good,” said geologist John Mustard, who co-authored the paper.
In a paper published this week in the journal Nature, the researchers suggest that Mars may have been mostly covered in water during the planet’s first 600 million–700 million years.
Most importantly, the water may have been temperate enough to support life. The Phoenix Mars Lander recently collected ice from the Red Planet and, on the opposite end of the thermometer, scientists have hypothesized in the past that if water existed on Mars, it would have been far too hot for living creatures.
But the new images show deposits of claylike minerals that form at relatively low temperatures, meaning “benign seas” that could have hosted these minerals—and, possibly, life—may have once existed on the planet’s surface, according to Wired.
“I think the prospects for present life were dim, but for past life, during this habitable era, they were really quite good,” said geologist John Mustard, who co-authored the paper.
Headline Links: ‘Water, Water Everywhere on Mars’
Previous evidence collected from the Red Planet has suggested geothermic gushers of water, and most recently, ice was discovered on Mars, but the new images suggest a past “habitable era,” said John Mustard, the study’s co-author.
Source: Wired
The abstract of the paper written by Mustard and his team, “Hydrated silicate minerals on Mars observed by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter CRISM instrument,” is available on Nature’s Web site. Access to the full article is available to subscribers or for a fee.
Source: Nature
Related Topics: The Phoenix Lander; the search for alien life; water on the Moon
The Mars Phoenix Lander landed on Mars on May 25, ready to search for evidence of water, ice and, possibly, signs of life. “If we’re successful, this mission will be remembered for being the first to do direct analysis of ice or water on the surface of Mars,” said NASA’s Mike Gross.
Source: findingDulcinea
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
Recently discovered planets, Japan’s interplanetary stakeout, and the discovery of alkaline soil on Mars are bringing new hope to the search for extraterrestrial life.
Source: findingDulcinea
Earlier this month, a research team discovered evidence of water that came from deep within the moon, contained in lunar volcanic glass.
Source: findingDulcinea
Analysis: Will we ever discover life on Mars?
In light of the Phoenix Lander ice discovery, LiveScience explores the possibility of finding definitive evidence of life on Mars, and what circumstances and tools 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
Reference: The Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer
A Web site dedicated to the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars provides information on how the instrument works to detect minerals on the Martian surface. “The CRISM team includes expertise from universities, government agencies and small businesses in the United States and abroad,” according to the site.
Source: Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars
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