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Geologist PAN of water on Mars: this groundbreaking information
Dr Łosiak referred in this way to Monday reported the American space agency. NASA announced that it has evidence of spectroscopic observations to the presence of hydrated salt on the surface of Mars, which indicates the periodic presence of liquid water in areas where they are present.
Recent analysis of data collected by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) give the strongest evidence to date that liquid water exists on Mars periodically as today, and not only in the distant geological past . Using the imaging spectrometer operating on board the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, researchers recorded the occurrence of signatures of hydrated minerals on the slopes, which are visible mysterious dark bands.
It is difficult today would gain even greater certainty as to the water – said Dr. Łosiak. – To have an even stronger confirmation, you would need to send a lander, rover’s best, who have checked everything right on the spot – she said.
Water on Mars is about the exciting, because it is essential every form of life as we know it, including bacteria that live in the most hostile conditions on Earth – drew the attention of Dr. Łosiak. – If the water is on Mars – that is to say that perhaps some form of life ever existed there, and may even managed to survive – he explains.
Geologist notes that we are talking about water as we know it (H2O). – It is important if we want the future to send humans into space. We need to choose a place where they can find water, not only because it is essential to drink. Also, because it can be to produce oxygen, it is also needed to get the rocket fuel – he says.
Geologist recalled that in the distant history of Martian water flowed there. – More than three billion years ago, Earth and Mars looked similar. On both planets, rain or snow, and rivers flow into lakes or even oceans. Unfortunately, more than three billion years ago a large part of the water, once present on the surface of the Red Planet, uleciało irretrievably into space. This was due to the much smaller than Earth’s gravitational pull of gravity that Mars “holds” its own atmosphere, and as a result the lack of a protective magnetic field.
– At the same time in the past accepted that the best explanation for some forms of terrain, such as for example RSL (puzzling structures on the surface of the Red Planet, known as “recurring slope lineae” which can be translated as ” periodically recurring lines on the slopes “- ed.), it is the presence of water. And not just in the distant past, but can also be quite recent – says Dr. Łosiak, one of the authors of the material devoted to the water on Mars, published in the latest issue of the journal “Icarus”. As for the calculation of the Polish-American team indicating that the surface of the northern polar cap of Mars may have water in liquid form.
Dr Łosiak points out that we are talking about the very distant past, the life of the planet. – The times in which dinosaurs are from us away 65 million years. We are talking about three billion years – she pointed out.
According to Dr. Łosiak, after confirming the presence of water on Mars most important question on this planet is now a matter of life: if it’s there at all developed, and if so, whether managed to survive to our times. This will take another mission, NASA and ESA, for example. The planned joint European Space Agency and the Russian Space Agency Roskosmos mission ExoMars, which will depart probably in 2016.
In 2018. is also planned to send the rover, which aim to determine whether there is life on Mars. Also new research will be conducted under the surface of the planet – said Dr. Łosiak. – Why? Mars is dry, there is there a very strong radiation. In organisms such as we know them, subject to such conditions, the genetic material would be simply destroyed. Therefore, if we can find potential microorganisms that they would rather live somewhere beneath the surface – he says.
(RC)
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