At a specially convened press conference, NASA announced that it has evidence that Mars – where the average temperature is -63 degrees C, periodically water flows.
Recent analysis of data collected by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) give the strongest so far is evidence that liquid water periodically occur on Mars as today, and not only in the distant geological past. Using a spectrometer imager working on board the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, scientists have registered a signature presence of hydrated minerals on the slopes, which are visible mysterious dark bands.
The mysterious structure called “recurring slope lineae” (RSL), which can be translated as “periodically recurring lines on the slopes.” We have already assumed that they could have a relationship with the water.
Dark bandwidth increase and decrease with the passage of time. During the warm season they darken and extend downward, while in colder periods of weakening. You can be seen in several places on Mars where the temperature reaches minus 23 degrees Celsius. When it is colder, disappearing from these places.
The discovery on the slopes of the presence of hydrated salt process, which helped to explain. Hydrated salts lower the temperature of the freezing point of water, just as it does on Earth (for example shav- road salt causes the snow to melt ice faster).
– Hydrated salts occur only at times when seasonal structures were widest, suggesting that either the same dark bands or a process of forming them is a source of hydration. In both cases, the detection of hydrated salt on the hillsides means that water plays an important role in the formation of dark structures – said at Monday’s press conference Lujendra Ojha at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta (USA). It is the main author of publications on the subject, which simultaneously appeared in the scientific journal “Nature Geoscience” .
The research team interprets the lines hydrated salt as suitable for hydrated minerals called perchlorate (Perchlorate is a salt of perchloric acid). The most fit here blend of magnesium perchlorate, chlorate, magnesium and sodium perchlorate.
Perchlorate was detected earlier on Mars, including in the workplace Phoenix lander and rover Curiosity. Some scientists believe that they also detected landers Viking 1 and Viking 2 On Earth naturally occurring perchlorate are concentrated in the deserts. Some of their kinds can be used as rocket fuel.
Source: CNN Newsource / x-news
NASA astronomers not yet know whether the water comes from the planet’s interior, or from the atmosphere. Even her discovery of Denmark experts, increases the chances of detecting signs of life there.
IAR / PAP / NASA / fc
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