Water Flowed Recently on Mars 411
elfguygmail.com writes "According to to Space.com 'Small gullies on Mars were carved by water recently and would be prime locations to look for life, NASA scientists said today.' "
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Water Flowed Recently on Mars
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All I ask is a chance to prove that money can't make me happy.
Re:Move on NASA! (Score:5, Interesting)
Unfortunately, there's a good chance that "life on Mars" is just "life on Earth that migrated to Mars". Many years ago, I remember listening to a scientist who was absolutely certain that we'd find microscopic life on Mars. His reasoning was that with all the ejecta shot into space from Asteroids and other natural phenomena, there *must* be some Earth life that managed to make it to Mars.
Re:How recently? (Score:2, Interesting)
The new study suggests water may still bubble to the surface of Mars now and then, flow for a short stretch, then boil away in the thin, cold air.
That would seem to suggest that "recently" may well be right at this moment.
Re:Move on NASA! (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Move on NASA! (Score:5, Interesting)
I'd say it would be the biggest discovery in recorded history. I'm not trying to belittle the significance of Atomic or Quantum physics, but lets step back and look at this.
If extra-terrestrial life were discovered, on Mars, or elsewhere, and there was solid proof for it, it would change the entire world. Many religious beliefs would be decimated, many scientific theories would be challenged or completely re-written, we would know that we are not alone in the universe, that we are an even more insignificant part of it that we already think we are, and importantly it would give a huge boost to those who want to see space exploration in our future.
It would have a profound effect upon every human on this planet... what could be bigger than answering one of our greatest questions about existance of life in our known universe?
Re:Move on NASA! (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Move on NASA! (10 percenter) (Score:5, Interesting)
Which part of you, the stupid part or the apathetic part? (I realize this comment may get moderators panties in a bunch, but it had to be said)
I'm not flaming, rather frustrated. I mean if we already *know* (or have a strong feeling) there is water/ ice on Mars, then lets get the plans going for a Manned space mission in-the-works. They need to excite the public, not continue the ho-hum exploration for the elusive "Martian Single-Cell Alien." The public wants Buck Rogers or Star Trek, not another Mars rover. Bleh!
Then why don't you go watch MTV or E! or other drivel that can just barely keep you interested for the entirety of your 2 minute attention span. Yeah, let's not have another Mars rover, one of the most fantastic scientific achievements in space exploration in recent history. I am not even going to go into WHY that was such an amazing feat, it would be lost on you.
Your attitude is part of the problem with this country. I am starting to believe that old myth that some people only use 10% of their brains.
Likely For Life If (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Likely For Life If (Score:2, Interesting)
More likely in caves (Score:5, Interesting)
Why caves? Two reasons:
- Here on Earth, there's some pretty "alien" forms of
life in caves [pbs.org] that exists in very different and harsh conditions.
- On Mars, an ecosystem in a cave would be sheltered from the harsh solar radiation that bakes/sterilizes the surface since there's no protective ozone later.
Even though Mars is smaller than Earth, the land area is about the same as Earth, so it will take a long time to explore Mars fully.I agree that continuing to explore the surface won't lead to much, but there's probably lots of interesting stuff in caves.
Re:Move on NASA! (Score:2, Interesting)
Once self-propagating chemical systems form, they are likely to produce chemicals of the same chirality. Fast-forward a billion years, and the various chemicals that remain naturally occurring on Earth are all of the same chirality, because self-propagating systems have been making more of those, while the other chirality hasn't had the same benefit.
In fact, you could have systems (or organisms) of each chirality coexisting when the building block molecules were found in both chiralities. All it takes is one evolutionary breakthrough in one organism to have its population skyrocket and take up all the resources that the other organisms are trying to use. Better yet, if one organism happens to develop an enzyme for breaking down molecules of the opposite chirality, it easily kills off half the competition.
Re:Move on NASA! (Score:5, Interesting)
Well, that's one of the exciting things the data will tell us! If the genetic code is the same, then we know life didn't evolve seprately - by one means or another it migrated from one place or the other.
If Martian genetics is built off of molecules other than U/TAGC, then we know for sure that it evolved seperately in both places (and that there are multiple building blocks that work, which would be an interesting discovery in its own right).
If the chemicals are the same but the code is different, then that probably means independent evolution, but if there's some similarity scientists can argue about it for centuries! Won't that be entertaining?
Re:New food for thought (Score:3, Interesting)
I hate to disabuse you, but you're out by a couple of orders of magnitude. 10 million years is considered "recent" in the context of Martian geology and landscape morphology. Nothing much is thought to have happened (except in the sense of very slow processes, such as air-borne dust particle erosion, the occasional impact and periodic outbursts of sub-surface ice as water which immediately freezes or boils. Michael Malin announced the discovery of flowing water on the surface literally years ago, based on analysis of imagery from his cameras on Mars Odyssey ; you can see these small channels bursting out along the rims of craters and steep cliffs in various places, and it was pretty obvious that this was evidence for ice beneath the surface in some areas, at least.
Re:Someone inform me? (Score:3, Interesting)
Mars definitely does have an atmosphere, check this [nasa.gov] out.
-Jesse
Re:Move on NASA! (Score:1, Interesting)
Did you just outline religious darwinism?
Chrisitanity formed and grown through the same basic theory they hate (darwinism's theories: ie. the basis for the theory of evolution).
Now that is irony!
Life may NOT be what we think it should be (Score:2, Interesting)
Just because they were not able to find water on a planet doesn't mean that life doesn't exist. Don't we know of creature on our very own earth where they survice at absolute depths on volcanoes/oceans where they don't get sunlight or water or other harsh environment?
What I'm alluding to is that if there's life on mars, we need to be open to suggestions that life doesn't alwways need oxygen/water & 28 degree celcius temp. This is what gets me about hollywood as well. They always show aliens having somewhat human bodies with 2 eyes & nose, mouth etc.
Re:Move on NASA! (Score:2, Interesting)
Or as I like to say: Any religion that encourages abstinance for it's members won't be one for long.
Who else finds it ironic that any religion would not believe in natural selection when presented with such obviously-correct logic?
Re:Move on NASA! (Score:3, Interesting)
Do you have a clue. (Score:2, Interesting)
Full circle? (Score:1, Interesting)
That whole idea was exploded soon after better telescopes were invented, and now... guess what? We actually get cameras on the damn planet, and now everyone thinks maybe there where canals that may have had water in them. Interesting.