http://www.marsnews.com/ en-us tourdemars@marsnews.com Copyright 2009 Wed, 09 Dec 2009 10:37:50 -0800 Wed, 09 Dec 2009 10:44:32 -0800 http://www.movabletype.org/?v=3.2 tourdemars@marsnews.com 60 The methane found on Mars is not brought to the planet by meteor strikes, scientists say. Meteoritic material subjected to high temperatures did not release enough methane to account for the amount believed to be released on Mars. The researchers argue that the methane must therefore be created by geologic or chemical processes, or it is a by-product of microbial life. The work appears in Earth and Planetary Science Letters. The origin of the methane on Mars has remained a mystery since it was first detected in 2004. Because methane has a limited lifetime in the Martian atmosphere before degrading, some process must be pumping hundreds of tonnes of it into the Martian atmosphere annually to keep it at the levels that have been detected. http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2009/12/09/mars_methane_not_from_meteors.html Life on Mars Wed, 09 Dec 2009 10:37:50 -0800 A research team at Johnson Space Centre in Houston has been re-examining a meteorite that hit Antarctica 13,000 years ago, and found the most compelling evidence yet that the planet once harboured bacterial life. The team says that microscopic crystals found in the rock are almost certainly fossilised bacteria that have many characteristics in common with bacteria found on Earth. “The evidence supporting the possibility of past life on Mars has been slowly building up during the past decade,” said David McKay, NASA chief scientist for exploration and astrobiology. “This evidence includes signs of past surface water including remains of rivers, lakes and possibly oceans and signs of current water near or at the surface.” http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2009/12/01/nasa_compelling_evidence_of_life_on_mars.html Life on Mars Tue, 01 Dec 2009 15:25:59 -0800 Compelling new data that chemical and fossil evidence of ancient microbial life on Mars was carried to Earth in a Martian meteorite is being elevated to a higher plane by the same NASA team which made the initial discovery 13 years ago. Sources tell Spaceflight Now that the new data are providing a powerful new case for the Allen Hills Meteorite to have carried strong evidence of Martian life to Earth -- evidence that is increasingly standing up to scrutiny as new analytical tools are used to examine the specimen. http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2009/11/29/martian_meteorite_surrenders_new_secrets_of_possible_life.html Life on Mars Sun, 29 Nov 2009 11:16:42 -0800 The possibility of life on Mars and other planets and moons has been debated for as long as we have known about those planets. Now that water has been found on the Mars, that possibility is more believable than ever. Sure, conditions are fierce on Mars, but research here on planet Earth reveals that life forms can be tough. In fact, wherever it was once thought that no life could exist, more and more organisms are being found that not only live, but thrive and evolve. http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2009/11/11/extremophiles_life_on_the_edge.html Life on Mars Wed, 11 Nov 2009 11:07:30 -0800 In 1924, Earth saw its closest Mars opposition in over a century, and some thought our Martian neighbors might use the event to attempt contact. So for one night, US Naval and Army stations scanned the skies for extraterrestrial transmissions. On August 22, 1924, the Earth was 55,777,566 km from the Red Planet during the Mars opposition, offering ideal conditions for receiving radio signals from Mars — if anyone happened to be sending them. Amherst College professor David Todd persuaded both the US Army and Navy to listen for messages from Mars. In the telegram above, Edward W. Eberle, the Chief of US Naval Operations, informs Naval stations of the possibility of Martian communications, and instructs them to report any unusual phenomena. For three days, the stations listened for unusual transmissions, but came up empty handed. http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2009/11/08/us_armed_forces_listened_for_messages_from_mars.html Life on Mars Sun, 08 Nov 2009 21:24:56 -0800 series of newly discovered depressions on the Martian surface could be the entrances to a cave system on the red planet. Hints of subsurface tunnels have been found in images of Mars before, but the new evidence is more suggestive, said Glen Cushing, a physicist with the U.S. Geological Survey who discovered the possible caves. Such a subsurface system could provide shelter to future Mars-visiting astronauts, as well as a protective habitat to any potential past or present Martian microbes, Cushing said. http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2009/10/26/mars_caves_might_protect_microbes_or_astronauts.html Planetology Mon, 26 Oct 2009 11:40:06 -0800 Some pesky scientists have just pointed out an appalling design error in NASA’s latest attempts to find life on Mars. This is beginning to look like a conspiracy. Does someone not want us to find life on Mars? NASA has tried looking for signs of life on Mars precisely once, in the 1976 Viking mission. The result was positive. The reason nobody says there is life on Mars is that another experiment, part of the same mission, couldn’t find any carbon-based “organic” chemicals in Martian soil. This, NASA decided, overruled the other result: with no carbon present, there could be no microbes living on or under the surface of Mars. Last year, the Phoenix lander repeated the carbon search and failed to find organic molecules. The problem is, we know that there ought to be organic molecules on Mars. Asteroid and comet impacts will have put them there. So what’s going on? Both of the searches for organic molecules, it turns out, have been deeply flawed. http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2009/06/11/is_there_a_life_on_mars_conspiracy.html Life on Mars Thu, 11 Jun 2009 14:45:17 -0800 team of NASA and university scientists has achieved the first definitive detection of methane in the atmosphere of Mars. This discovery indicates the planet is either biologically or geologically active. The team found methane in the Martian atmosphere by carefully observing the planet throughout several Mars years with NASA's Infrared Telescope Facility and the W.M. Keck telescope, both at Mauna Kea, Hawaii. The team used spectrometers on the telescopes to spread the light into its component colors, as a prism separates white light into a rainbow. The team detected three spectral features called absorption lines that together are a definitive signature of methane. http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2009/01/15/discovery_of_methane_reveals_mars_is_not_a_dead_planet.html Life on Mars Thu, 15 Jan 2009 17:08:52 -0800 ALIEN microbes living just below the Martian soil are responsible for a haze of methane around the Red Planet, Nasa scientists believe. The gas, belched in vast quantities in our world by cows, was detected by orbiting spacecraft and from Earth using giant telescopes. http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2009/01/14/life_on_mars_nasas_historic_discovery_of_methane_on_mars.html Life on Mars Wed, 14 Jan 2009 22:21:14 -0800 Nasa scientists have detected "plumes" of methane on Mars, possibly indicating organic activity on the Red Planet. http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2009/01/14/mars_methane_discovery_hints_at_presence_of_life.html Life on Mars Wed, 14 Jan 2009 22:17:39 -0800 Planetary scientists at NASA's Goddard Flight Center claim to have identified hotspots of methane gas emission, extremely localized plumes whose concentration fades quickly in time. An atmosphere-wide distribution that's stable in time would indicate a balance between geological sources and destruction by sunlight. Localized sources, however, suggest much more active sources. What's the best source of methane most people know about? Cows. That's unlikely on Mars. But backing off a level, the important factor is LIFE. NASA team leader Michael Mumma puts forward the idea that subterranean bacteria could be producing the noxious fumes, which periodically percolate to the surface in short lived bursts. But it could also be a geological source deep below the surface. The CH4 was identified spectroscopically, analyzing the exact wavelengths of the light emitted from certain regions over time. It's exactly the same strategy the astronomers of old used, "just looking at what color things are", but since we worked out (some) quantum mechanics the same light can tell us so much more. Unfortunately, it can't make the crucial distinction between life or rock-based gas. But if we can just get a bit closer we can find out. http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2008/11/11/has_mars_science_laboratory_made_the_discovery_of_the_decade.html Life on Mars Tue, 11 Nov 2008 01:02:26 -0800 A bug discovered deep in a goldmine and nicknamed "the bold traveller" has got astrobiologists buzzing with excitement. Its unique ability to live in complete isolation of any other living species suggests it could be the key to life on other planets. A community of the bacteria Candidatus Desulforudis audaxviator has been discovered 2.8 kilometres beneath the surface of the Earth in fluid-filled cracks of the Mponeng goldmine in South Africa. Its 60°C home is completely isolated from the rest of the world, and devoid of light and oxygen. http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2008/10/10/goldmine_bug_dna_may_be_key_to_alien_life.html Life on Mars Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:44:14 -0800 If life on Mars exists, it may dwell in a violent home. The Red Planet is no stranger to fiery volcanic eruptions: It is home to the solar system's largest volcano, Olympus Mons. The planet is also well-endowed with ice, which has collected in large sheets near its north and south poles. Yet a key ingredient for life as we know it -- liquid water -- remains elusive. But what if fire met ice in the Martian north? On Earth, volcanoes sometimes erupt beneath glaciers, melting huge quantities of water and spawning massive floods. Lakes of meltwater are sometimes pinned at the bottoms of glaciers. http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2008/09/06/on_mars_does_fire_plus_ice_equal_life.html Life on Mars Sat, 06 Sep 2008 13:33:31 -0800 The unanticipated discovery of a mineral in Mars’ arctic soil doesn’t rule out the possibility that the red planet could support life, scientists with the Phoenix lander said today. While cautioning that the discovery of perchlorate, an oxidizing agent found in rocket fuel, still had to be confirmed by more experiments, scientists with the UA-led Phoenix Mars Mission rejected speculation that the mineral’s presence killed the possibility of life on the planet. “These compounds are quite stable and don’t destroy organic compounds,” said Peter Smith, the UA’s lead scientist for the mission. “This is an important piece in the puzzle and it is neither good nor bad for life.” While perchlorate can be hazardous to some life forms on Earth, others use the molecules for life, including in remote arid desert regions. “The interesting thing is perchlorate is a relatively inert oxidant,” said Richard Quinn, a mission scientist. “There are some microbes that use it as an energy source.” http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2008/08/05/scientists_debate_the_meaning_of_mineral_found_on_mars.html Phoenix Lander Tue, 05 Aug 2008 13:00:26 -0800 NASA's Phoenix lander has discovered a toxic chemical in soil near Mars' north pole, dimming hopes for finding life on the Red Planet, the probe's operators said Monday. The chemical, perchlorate, is an oxidant widely used in solid rocket fuel. Researchers are still puzzling over the results and checking to make sure the perchlorate wasn't carried to Mars from Earth, the University of Arizona-based science team said. "While we have not completed our process on these soil samples, we have very interesting intermediate results," Peter Smith, the principal investigator for the project, said in a written statement. Early readings from a device aboard Phoenix called the Microscopy, Electrochemistry and Conductivity Analyzer, or MECA, "suggested Earth-like soil," Smith said. "Further analysis has revealed un-Earthlike aspects of the soil chemistry," he said. The Phoenix team has scheduled a teleconference for Tuesday to discuss the findings. http://www.marsnews.com/archives/2008/08/05/toxin_in_soil_may_mean_no_life_on_mars.html Phoenix Lander Tue, 05 Aug 2008 07:08:51 -0800