When Mars was habitable
5 years, 6 months ago

When Mars was habitable

CNN  

CNN — Life could have found a way to establish on Mars 4.48 billion years ago, according to a new study. Life could have thrived between 3.5 billion and 4.2 billion years ago, which predates the earliest evidence of life on Earth by 500 million years. The researchers believe that the samples show that heavy meteorites stopped striking Mars before the mineral grains were formed. “Giant meteorite impacts on Mars between 4.2 and 3.5 billion years ago may have actually accelerated the release of early waters from the interior of the planet setting the stage for life-forming reactions,” said Desmond Moser, study author and associate professor in Western University’s Department of Earth Science and Geography, in a statement.

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History of this topic

Perseverance rover is about to see some of the oldest rocks on Mars
4 weeks, 1 day ago

Perseverance rover is about to see some of the oldest rocks on Mars

CNN  

Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. “Perseverance is ‘go’ for everything the science team wants to throw at it during this next science campaign.” Perseverance has already conducted four broad investigations of Jezero Crater’s floor, as well as the river delta that once fed into it, including exploring, observing, and sampling rocks and dust. “It marks our transition …

‘Black Beauty’ meteorite preserves evidence of hot, ancient water on Mars
1 month ago

‘Black Beauty’ meteorite preserves evidence of hot, ancient water on Mars

CNN  

Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. “Our data suggests the presence of water in the crust of Mars at a comparable time to the earliest evidence for water on Earth’s surface, around 4.4 billion years ago,” said lead study author Jack Gillespie, researcher at the University of Lausanne’s Faculty of Geosciences and Environment in Switzerland, in a statement. …

Rock collected by Apollo 17 astronaut in 1972 reveals moon's age
1 year, 2 months ago

Rock collected by Apollo 17 astronaut in 1972 reveals moon's age

The Hindu  

During the Apollo 17 mission in 1972 - the last time people walked on the moon - U.S. astronauts Harrison Schmitt and Eugene Cernan collected about 243 pounds of soil and rock samples that were returned to Earth for further study. A half century later, crystals of the mineral zircon inside a coarse-grained igneous rock fragment collected by Schmitt are …

Pre-Historic Life On Mars? NASA's Curiosity rover spots a strange bone-like rock on the red planet
1 year, 8 months ago

Pre-Historic Life On Mars? NASA's Curiosity rover spots a strange bone-like rock on the red planet

Firstpost  

In its most recent set of images uploaded, NASA’s Curiosity rover has shared a number of images of a strange structure on Mars. ‘Really unusual, never seen anything like this and I have been looking at Mars photographs since the Sojourner mission back in 1997,’ another person said. Ms, Cabrol also stated that it was most likely the “remains of …

The surface and crust of Mars may be more complex than scientists once thought
2 years, 2 months ago

The surface and crust of Mars may be more complex than scientists once thought

The Independent  

Sign up to our free weekly IndyTech newsletter delivered straight to your inbox Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. So, it’s more about understanding that process, and especially what it means for how Earth’s crust first …

How does studying a Martian meteorite help understand Earth’s origins?
2 years, 5 months ago

How does studying a Martian meteorite help understand Earth’s origins?

The Hindu  

More than 4.5 billion years ago, it’s possible that Mars, the Red Planet, had a crust comparable to Iceland today. This discovery, hidden in the oldest martian fragments found on Earth, could provide information about our planet that was lost over billions of years of geological movement and could help explain why the Earth developed into a planet that sustains …

No Life On Martian Meteorite Found In Antarctica In 1996
2 years, 11 months ago

No Life On Martian Meteorite Found In Antarctica In 1996

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — A 4 billion-year-old meteorite from Mars that caused a splash here on Earth decades ago contains no evidence of ancient, primitive Martian life after all, scientists reported Thursday. Tiny samples from the meteorite show the carbon-rich compounds are actually the result of water — most likely salty, or briny, water — flowing over …

Is there life on Mars? Curiosity begins exploring region full of clay, salty minerals
3 years, 4 months ago

Is there life on Mars? Curiosity begins exploring region full of clay, salty minerals

India Today  

The Curiosity rover, which has been trundling on the surface of Mars for eight years, entered its ninth year of the mission by venturing into an unexplored part of Mars. Engineers driving the rover on the Martian surface said that the mountain’s layers in this area may reveal how the ancient environment within Gale Crater dried up over time. “The …

Mars may have been habitable for millions of years, finds study
3 years, 6 months ago

Mars may have been habitable for millions of years, finds study

India Today  

As the Perseverance rover begins its journey to look for signs of ancient microbial life in the Jazero crater, a new study of soil samples from the Gale crater has strengthened the possibility that life once flourished on the now-barren Mars. The Gale crater is home to Nasa's Curiosity rover, which is about 3,700 kilometres away from Perseverance's location. Researchers …

What we know about the Red Planet from 260 Martian meteorites found on Earth
3 years, 10 months ago

What we know about the Red Planet from 260 Martian meteorites found on Earth

Firstpost  

Martian meteorites also hold clues about how people may one day be able to survive on the planet. Although there have been no return missions, there is a lot we can learn without travelling to Mars — from the more than 260 Martian meteorites that have fallen on Earth. Using a scanning electron microscope, my examination revealed it was a …

Perseverance Lands: What We Already Know of Mars From Meteorites
3 years, 10 months ago

Perseverance Lands: What We Already Know of Mars From Meteorites

The Quint  

Images taken by orbiters reveal Mars has more than 40,000 craters, each formed by an asteroid colliding with the surface. Eventually, some of the ejected Martian material has intercepted Earth’s trajectory, flashing through the atmosphere until it either burned up or came to rest on the surface. Although Martian meteorites have been found across Earth, most have been collected from …

Water on ancient Mars: Meteorite Black Beauty shows water formed 4.4 billion years ago on red planet
4 years, 2 months ago

Water on ancient Mars: Meteorite Black Beauty shows water formed 4.4 billion years ago on red planet

India Today  

Scientists have believed that there has been water on Mars for at least 3.7 billion years, but new research shows there was water present much earlier than thought -- around 4.4 billion years ago. WATER PRESENT ON MARS 4.4 BILLION YEARS AGO | THE STUDY OF METEORITES The Science Daily report said that a pair of dark meteorites -- named …

Mineral Composition of Meteorite Suggests Water Was Formed 4.4 Billion Years Ago on Mars
4 years, 2 months ago

Mineral Composition of Meteorite Suggests Water Was Formed 4.4 Billion Years Ago on Mars

News 18  

After analysing an ancient Martian meteorite, a team of Japanese researchers has revealed that water on the Red Planet originated some 4.4 billion years ago. But from the mineral composition of the meteorite, Mikouchi and his team revealed that it is likely there was water present much earlier, at around 4.4 billion years ago. This oxidation could have occurred if …

NASA's Mars 2020 rover to search for signs of past microbial life on the red planet
5 years, 1 month ago

NASA's Mars 2020 rover to search for signs of past microbial life on the red planet

India Today  

In what could shed more light on the red planet, Mars; NASA scientists have discovered what may be one of the best places to look for signs of ancient life. Mars rover to search for signs of past microbial life Mars 2020 is NASA's next-generation mission with a focus on astrobiology. In this image of Jezero Crater, which is the …

The Mars 2020 rover will search for fossils and signs of ancient life
5 years, 1 month ago

The Mars 2020 rover will search for fossils and signs of ancient life

CNN  

CNN — When the Mars 2020 rover lands on the Red Planet in February 2021, it will touch down in Jezero Crater, the site of a lake that existed 3.5 billion years ago. Carbonate chemistry on an ancient lakeshore is a fantastic recipe for preserving records of ancient life and climate,” said Ken Williford, Mars 2020 deputy project scientist at …

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