Earlier this week NASA
announced that it had something it wanted to tell us about Mars. Today, NASA
scientists presented their findings in a pair of researcher papers published in
Science and hosted a live stream to explain it to the world. So, did NASA find
evidence of aliens? Well, not quite, but we might be getting closer.
NASA announced that the
Curiosity rover has discovered what scientists describe as “organic molecules”
in rock layers drilled into by the rover. These rock layers date back nearly
four billion years, to a time when Mars is thought to have been a much
friendlier place for life. This is incredibly exciting news, but it comes with
a big asterisk.
NASA is quick to point out
that this isn’t indisputable evidence for the existence of previous life on
Mars. These organic compounds may have indeed come from life forms on the
Martian surface billions of years ago, but that’s not the only way they could
have been created.
The researchers point out that there are other natural
processes by which these compounds could have formed, but because they were
discovered in an area of the planet that scientists think was once habitable,
it’s worth a whole lot of attention.
In addition to the discovery
of these special compounds, NASA is reporting today that its measurements of
methane in the Martian atmosphere are pretty wild, too. Scientists using
Curiosity’s high-powered instruments have detected large spikes in the levels
of methane in the atmosphere from season to season, and the source of it is
still a mystery.
It’s thought that the
methane is being created from reactions between rock and water beneath the
planet’s surface, but it’s also possible that it could by a byproduct of
microbial activity, meaning the presence of Martian life, albeit very tiny.
These revelations might seem
like just a big tease, but they’re incredibly important steps towards the
potential discovery of life on Mars. If that day eventually comes, discoveries
like the ones announced today will be gilded as stepping stones that led us
there, but for now we just have to wait and wonder.
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