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Mars

mars

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Bharath Venkatesh
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32 views

Mars

mars

Uploaded by

Bharath Venkatesh
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as TXT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Researchers have found traces of methane in Martian meteorites, a discovery that

suggests the presence of a warm, wet and chemically reactive environment on the
red planet where life could thrive.
The researchers examined samples from six meteorites of volcanic rock that origi
nated on Mars. The meteorites contain gases in the same proportion and with the
same isotopic composition as the Martian atmosphere.
All six samples also contained methane, which was measured by crushing the rocks
and running the emerging gas through a mass spectrometer.
The team also examined two non-Martian meteorites, which contained lesser amount
s of methane.
The discovery hints at the possibility that methane could be used as a food sour
ce by rudimentary forms of life beneath the Martian surface. On Earth, microbes
do this in a range of environments.
Other researchers will be keen to replicate these findings using alternative meas
urement tools and techniques, said co-author Sean McMahon, a Yale University post
doctoral associate in the Department of Geology and Geophysics.
Our findings will likely be used by astrobiologists in models and experiments aim
ed at understanding whether life could survive below the surface of Mars today, M
cMahon said.
One of the most exciting developments in the exploration of Mars has been the sug
gestion of methane in the Martian atmosphere, said University of Aberdeen profess
or John Parnell, who directed the research.
Recent and forthcoming missions by NASA and the European Space Agency, respective
ly, are looking at this, however, it is so far unclear where the methane comes f
rom, and even whether it is really there.
However, our research provides a strong indication that rocks on Mars contain a l
arge reservoir of methane, Parnell said.
McMahon noted that the team s approach may prove helpful in future Mars rover expe
riments.Researchers have found traces of methane in Martian meteorites, a discov
ery that suggests the presence of a warm, wet and chemically reactive environmen
t on the red planet where life could thrive.
The researchers examined samples from six meteorites of volcanic rock that origi
nated on Mars. The meteorites contain gases in the same proportion and with the
same isotopic composition as the Martian atmosphere.
All six samples also contained methane, which was measured by crushing the rocks
and running the emerging gas through a mass spectrometer.
The team also examined two non-Martian meteorites, which contained lesser amount
s of methane.
The discovery hints at the possibility that methane could be used as a food sour
ce by rudimentary forms of life beneath the Martian surface. On Earth, microbes
do this in a range of environments.
Other researchers will be keen to replicate these findings using alternative meas
urement tools and techniques, said co-author Sean McMahon, a Yale University post
doctoral associate in the Department of Geology and Geophysics.

Our findings will likely be used by astrobiologists in models and experiments aim
ed at understanding whether life could survive below the surface of Mars today, M
cMahon said.
One of the most exciting developments in the exploration of Mars has been the sug
gestion of methane in the Martian atmosphere, said University of Aberdeen profess
or John Parnell, who directed the research.
Recent and forthcoming missions by NASA and the European Space Agency, respective
ly, are looking at this, however, it is so far unclear where the methane comes f
rom, and even whether it is really there.
However, our research provides a strong indication that rocks on Mars contain a l
arge reservoir of methane, Parnell said.
McMahon noted that the team s approach may prove helpful in future Mars rover expe
riments.

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