was once a lake on Mars could harbor some form of microbial life. Occurred about 3,600 million years ago in what is called Yellowknife Bay in Gale Crater near the Martian Ecuador. This is one of the latest findings Curiosity , the robotic vehicle NASA since joining the Red Planet in August 2012, is drilling and analyzing subsurface rocks for signs of life the past.
data being collected rover tie up a large number of research teams in different countries. In fact, this is only one of the six research Curiosity published this week Science . NASA The vehicle will also be one of the protagonists of Congress that fall American Geophysical Union held these days in San Francisco (California, USA), which will be presented and discussed recent scientific results.
Not the first time found evidence of the presence of water after analyzing Martian rocks. Previously, the same team that signs this study, along with other researchers from MSL (Mars Science Laboratory), were found in the clusters but, as explained, this new work is the one that offers more evidence of the possibility that Mars was inhabited last. Rocks have also been found showing signs that were carved and shaped by flowing water, such as rivers or streams.
A freshwater lake
signed Scientists study the Martian lakes are based on the analysis of a series of sedimentary rocks called shales, which usually form in calm water.
src=”http://estaticos03.elmundo.es/assets/multimedia/imagenes/2013/12/09/13866050272575_464x0.jpg”
Curiosity pierced
place where the soil to extract sedimentary rocks.
SCIENCE
Researchers believe it would be a freshwater lake with a relatively low salinity and neutral pH should contain elements like carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur and phosphorus . A lake of these features, they argue, meet the perfect conditions for microbial life is very simple given, as called chemolithoautotrophs.
These microbes on Earth that are easily found in caves and near hydrothermal vents. These organisms obtain energy from the oxidation of inorganic compounds found in rocks and minerals.
Radiation on Mars
Researchers clarify that the fact that this lake could harbor life does not mean that I had : “It is important to stress that we did not find signs of ancient life on Mars What we have discovered is. Gale Crater that could have supported a lake in the area that in the past could have met favorable conditions for microbial life. is a hugely positive step for the exploration of Mars, “e xplica researcher Sanjeev Gupta, Department of Earth Sciences at Imperial College London (UK) and co-author of this work.
The next step forward will be to find the places where there were lakes or other living environments in Gale Crater, which has a width of about 150 miles.
Three of the six studies included in the special Curiosity provides details on the formation of Martian sediments, chemical components and the amount of radiation you are exposed to the world. The latter, led by Donald Hassler, measured the amount of radiation (both coming from cosmic rays and other energetic particles) that reaches the surface of Mars in 300 days. This study will help scientists figure over what period there may have been microbial life on Mars. Also contribute to the preparation of a future manned mission to the Red Planet, as may determine how long a human can survive on the inhospitable planet has become.
The research led by Scott McLennan on the formation of sediment samples Cumberland called John Klein and highlights the various environments that must have existed on Mars billions of years ago, for his analysis determined that probably formed under extremely cold and dry conditions respectively.
No comments:
Post a Comment