7th Graders Find Large Cave On Mars

A newly discovered cave on Mars was found as the result of an interesting crowdsourcing project. As EMB Numbers writes, "CNET news reports that 'the science class from Evergreen Middle School in Cottonwood, Calif., found the opening while working on a research project with the Mars Space Flight Facility run out of Arizona State University in Tempe. ... The students examined more than 200 images of Mars taken with the Thermal Emission Imaging System (Themis), an instrument on NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter.' The only other similar opening near the volcano was found in 2007, when Glen Cushing, a scientist with the US Geological Survey, published a research paper on the surface anomalies. The opening is estimated to be 620 by 520 feet and the hole to be at least 380 feet deep."

Re:RTFA...

[clone53421]

That was from the University press release [asu.edu], by the way, not the cnet article.

Wow .. Grade 7 has changed

[RabidMonkey]

When I was in grade 7 we learned about nothing even remotely as interesting as this. I think we looked at plant cells under a microscope.

It is pretty amazing that students can work with data like this, with computers and tools that enable it. Makes me wish I could go back to school and work on some of the stuff they teach in basic courses, particularly in high school.

Kids these days! (are damned lucky!)

Re:Wow .. Grade 7 has changed

[Anonymous Coward]

Some people would think that looking at cells under a microscope is more interesting than geological formations. Are these caves significantly different from those found on earth?

Re:Wow .. Grade 7 has changed

[cusco]

Depends on where you are. If you're in Benton Harbor, MI, (unemployment rate >70%, poverty rate >55%) you're learning how to keep the teacher from being robbed at knife point in the middle of class. If you're in Gross Point Shores, MI, you get to go on field trips to the Smithsonian and Cape Kennedy. This system of funding schools from property taxes is ridiculous.

Re:Wow

[CTalkobt]

The opening is estimated to be 620 feet by 520 feet and the hole to be at least 380 feet deep. Wow! That beats even goatse!

I'm sure you'll be moderated funny (as you should) ... however if you reach 5 then I'll know others, too - have suffered the same horrible fate I once did. It'll help heal the mental scars I still carry to this day...

Re:And this is why they cut the NASA budget

[Chris Burke]

The total budget is still larger, and thank goodness they're getting rid of Operation Lets-Repeat-Apollo-And-Act-Like-That-Means-Something which was preventing other actually new and interesting things from being accomplished.

BTW I got that you were joking, but it wasn't funny. It seems like there could be a joke premised on NASA hiring 7th graders, so maybe try working on it. Or not.

Re:these kids today

[Kratisto]

And we had to escape gravity wells both ways!