ilan
06-08-2018, 11:52 AM
NASA discoveries could boost search for ancient life on Mars
Sarah Kaplan, Washington Post | June 7 at 2:00 PM
https://www.washingtonpost.com/resizer/WflzQfix4Ix1Rv2bvejByXz8v7w=/1484x0/arc-anglerfish-washpost-prod-washpost.s3.amazonaws.com/public/FFKFUINAPQ7ENBEYL7BMIN2DAQ.jpg
A self-portrait taken by NASA's Curiosity rover in the Gale Crater. (NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS)
In puffs of gas from rocks more than 3 billion years old dug up by one of NASA's robotic explorers on Mars, scientists have identified several complex organic molecules — possible building blocks for ancient life.
It's not aliens. (It's never aliens.)
But it is “consistent with the past presence of biology,” said Ken Williford, an astrobiologist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. “And it makes us more confident that if biomarkers” — or direct evidence of biologic activity — “are there, we might find them.”
In two studies published today in the journal Science, this new finding from NASA's Curiosity rover is paired with another discovery: The planet's methane — another organic molecule usually (but not always) produced by living beings — varies with the seasons. In the past, scientists have seen plumes and patches of this intriguing substance, but this is the first time they've been able to discern a pattern in its presence. The result could pave the way for future missions to pin down the methane's source.
The closer we look, the more we see that Mars is a complex, dynamic planet that — particularly early in its history — was more conducive to life than we might have previously imagined,” said Williford, who was not involved in either study.
A reminder: Organic molecules aren't necessarily produced by organisms; they're just chemical compounds that contain carbon. But they're of interest to astrobiologists because they are the essential ingredients in all the chemistry that drives life on Earth.
Sarah Kaplan, Washington Post | June 7 at 2:00 PM
https://www.washingtonpost.com/resizer/WflzQfix4Ix1Rv2bvejByXz8v7w=/1484x0/arc-anglerfish-washpost-prod-washpost.s3.amazonaws.com/public/FFKFUINAPQ7ENBEYL7BMIN2DAQ.jpg
A self-portrait taken by NASA's Curiosity rover in the Gale Crater. (NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS)
In puffs of gas from rocks more than 3 billion years old dug up by one of NASA's robotic explorers on Mars, scientists have identified several complex organic molecules — possible building blocks for ancient life.
It's not aliens. (It's never aliens.)
But it is “consistent with the past presence of biology,” said Ken Williford, an astrobiologist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. “And it makes us more confident that if biomarkers” — or direct evidence of biologic activity — “are there, we might find them.”
In two studies published today in the journal Science, this new finding from NASA's Curiosity rover is paired with another discovery: The planet's methane — another organic molecule usually (but not always) produced by living beings — varies with the seasons. In the past, scientists have seen plumes and patches of this intriguing substance, but this is the first time they've been able to discern a pattern in its presence. The result could pave the way for future missions to pin down the methane's source.
The closer we look, the more we see that Mars is a complex, dynamic planet that — particularly early in its history — was more conducive to life than we might have previously imagined,” said Williford, who was not involved in either study.
A reminder: Organic molecules aren't necessarily produced by organisms; they're just chemical compounds that contain carbon. But they're of interest to astrobiologists because they are the essential ingredients in all the chemistry that drives life on Earth.