Organic matter found on Mars, Nasa reveals in major announcement
Latest research sheds light on the mysteries of Mars methane
Nasa's Curiosity rover has found organic matter preserved on Mars, in a discovery that could suggest it was once home to life.
Two new studies reveal vast new detail about how methane exists on the planet, which could help us understand the rich geology of our new neighbour.
And one team has made a significant breakthrough in our attempt to understand the ancient organic matter on Mars, which could help us understand whether the world was once habitable and what happened to it in the billions of years since.
Scientists have long been baffled by the discovery of significant amounts of methane on Mars. On Earth, most methane is produced by biological sources, leading to hopes that it could suggest the Red Planet is more alive than we'd thought.
The new data suggests that the methane is being stored underneath the surface of the planet. Seasonal changes appear to bring that methane out and onto the surface, where it has been detected by Curiosity, they suggest.
Another piece of research published simultaneously shows that intriguing organic molecules have been found in ancient rock on Mars. Curiosity took new samples and heated them so that it could analyse the molecules that were released - and the data showed that there is certain matter that is similar to the kind of organic-rich rock found on Earth.
Latest research sheds light on the mysteries of Mars methane
Nasa's Curiosity rover has found organic matter preserved on Mars, in a discovery that could suggest it was once home to life.
Two new studies reveal vast new detail about how methane exists on the planet, which could help us understand the rich geology of our new neighbour.
And one team has made a significant breakthrough in our attempt to understand the ancient organic matter on Mars, which could help us understand whether the world was once habitable and what happened to it in the billions of years since.
Scientists have long been baffled by the discovery of significant amounts of methane on Mars. On Earth, most methane is produced by biological sources, leading to hopes that it could suggest the Red Planet is more alive than we'd thought.
The new data suggests that the methane is being stored underneath the surface of the planet. Seasonal changes appear to bring that methane out and onto the surface, where it has been detected by Curiosity, they suggest.
Another piece of research published simultaneously shows that intriguing organic molecules have been found in ancient rock on Mars. Curiosity took new samples and heated them so that it could analyse the molecules that were released - and the data showed that there is certain matter that is similar to the kind of organic-rich rock found on Earth.
Comment