Water on Mars Now Seems Definitive
February 9th 2011 12:41
Category: Mars
Image taken by electron microscope showing a vein through which water has flowed. (Credit: University of Leicester)
The debate relating to whether or not the Martian planet had water has been going on for more than 200 years.
Ever since the Italian Astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli in 1877 though he saw cannali or canals on the surface of Mars. Astronomers have assumed that Mars did have water at one time.
In recent times with the landing of the Mars rover water deposits have been found just under the surface small frozen water deposits .
Even images of the Martian surface showing vast plains carved out by ancient water courses. There is evidence that supports the idea that Mars did have lakes and oceans. Although the oceans have since evaporated there is no sign of actual water on the Martian surface, except perhaps deposits on the Martian Polar Regions.
As we don’t have any rock samples from Mars we can not rule at the presence of water.
But we do have rock samples from Mars these samples are from fragments of Martian meteorites.
A century after the first discovery of a rare meteorite sample A university in Leicester discover the presence of water on the red planet.
Scientists examined some 5 fragments including fragments taken form the very first nakhlite discovered a century ago. Nakhlites are a form of meteorite known to have originated on Mars.
The university research team used electron microscopes to study wafer thin fragments taken form the meteorite samples.
The samples showed the presence of veins created during an impact on Mars when the original much larger meteorite impacted on the Martian surface trapping ice crystals with in the meteorite.
Eons later portions of the meteorite were expelled back into space when the surface of Mars was impacted by other meteorites. Some of the debris ejected from the Martian surface landed on Earth.
The minerals found in the meteorite fragments match data taken form NASA and ESA Martian Landers.
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Comment by S.L.
The Political Brief
Comment by CarlCan
Astroearth
Camera Sense
Hi S.L.
The dream to colonise space is getting closer. We may not be around to see it perhaps in our lifetime, still the dream should be kept alive for the future and for the sake of humanity.