Well, the title pretty much explains it all. Water has been found in the majority of martian soil, along with other chemical compounds such as oxygen and nitrogen, which, as we all hopefully know, are a crucial part of living. These bring up the possibility that life could have very possibly lived on Earth. They also found a type of rock on Mars that's very similar to a type of rock found on Earth, on a plethora of oceanic islands. This really wowed the scientist because it made them realize that Mars could have very well been like Earth, which is pretty amazing. One downside was that Curiosity discovered a chemical in the Martian soil, known as perchlorate, which is a chlorine compound that has released toxic elements that are dangerous for humans.
I remember hearing this on the news and just being blown away. There are so many remarkable things about this story, but let's just start with the basic one of THERE'S. WATER. ON. MARS. WATER!! This is such a monumental discovery! Think of it logically: if we were every going to colonize Mars, the biggest problem facing us would be how are we going to get water. We can't very well make it. We would either have to find some creative way to recycle it, or there would have to be a substantial source of it on the planet we inhabit. They are saying that there are 2 pints of water for every cubic foot of soil on the surface of Mars! That's just so incredible! If we could find some way to get the water out of the soil and turn it into a drinkable liquid, dodging the hazardous perchlorate, then we would be able to have enough water to supply a colony! They believe that these same results will be the same all over the planet, or at least a majority of it, based on their current results.
Another thing that's remarkable about this is the fact that we're just able to get this information! Really, just take a moment to contemplate just how remarkable Curiosity is. This machine was able to not only go to Mars, but it's also able to determine what kind of elements are in the soil! Science has just come so far over the past 50 years. We are able to send something to Mars and get results like this back! I know, I'm going a bit overboard on this, but it's just so amazing and makes me so hopeful for the future! Think of all the good that technology like this will be able to bring us!
http://www.foxnews.com/science/2013/09/26/curiosity-rover-makes-big-water-discovery-in-mars-dirt/
Clever title. I'm so relieved, we have a planet to fall back on! It's great to see NASA find ACTUAL water on Mars. And I agree, it's a monumental discovery, look where technology has gotten us!
ReplyDeleteZane Mallett 5th
I've always believed Mars could be considered as a secondary planet if Earth ever goes into the brink of god knows what. Anyhow, this excites me and with the discovery of water, it seems the future looks bright.
ReplyDeletethis actually really excites me because i find the solar system and the galaxies so interesting, and the fact that there could be more planets that are sustainable for life so close makes me realize that Earth really is just a small piece in the universe. we might not be the only humans out there!
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