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NASA's Mars News Is Not Life, But Perchlorate
leighklotz writes "In an update to the little green men story of not-life-on-Mars, NASA has twittered: 'The buzz this weekend was due to an interesting soil chemistry finding, still preliminary, but now avail here:' where 'here' is NASA Spacecraft Analyzing Martian Soil Data. The exciting bit: 'Within the last month, two samples have been analyzed by the Wet Chemistry Lab of the spacecraft's Microscopy, Electrochemistry, and Conductivity Analyzer, or MECA, suggesting one of the soil constituents may be perchlorate, a highly oxidizing substance.' Also, 'NASA will hold a media teleconference on Tuesday, Aug. 5, at 2 p.m. EDT, to discuss these recent science activities.'"
Perchlorate, ok. What are the ramifications of finding naturally occurring perchlorate?
You are right, and generally, the Space Shuttle missions are launched using 2 solid-fuel rockets, composed primarily of ammonium perchlorate, so it is certainly a possibility; but one should consider that if the probe itself is contaminated, it should be detecting perchlorates in all of the samples. . .
My sister opened a computer store in Hawaii. She sells C shells by the seashore.
So, how much manufacturing does this stuff need to be a viable source of rocket fuel to fire rockets back to earth?
If I mod you up, it doesn't necessarily mean I agree with what you've said, sorry.
It means that a planet made of rust has an oxidizing agent in the soil. I could've told you that without going to mars.
Badass Resumes
What it means - perchlorate can be used to make bombs. Therefore Mars has terrorists. There is life on Mars, albeit the bad kind.
Take the cheese to sickbay, the doctor should see it as soon as possible - B'Elanna Torres, "Learning Curve"
Keeping it in the atmosphere is quite another and is largely a function of gravity.
Engineering is the art of compromise.
Dr. Levin's Labeled Release experiment showed a strong positive response for life. Here is the crazy part and the part your mistaken about - all similar experiments on the Viking missions did as well.
Great scientists like Carl Sagan felt we had "evidence up to our eyebrows" but we also had uncertainty. Oxidizers were a possibility but none known (including percolates) explained the results.
Now we have one experiment giving us two results. Percolates in one sample none in another.
Ya know what? I think we have gotten back to uncertainty. It's a great thing. It's the greatest driver of science. No need to be ashamed of it.
Well, no one said it yet.
Cmon. They briefed the white house
about perchlorates? Really? They took time
to tell the prez about perchlorates?
SpaceGeek: Mr President, we found perchlorates.
Bush: Great, we can have blondes on Mars!
SpaceGeek: No, Mr President, not peroxide, perchlorates.
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Really? It wasn't about LGMs? Not even microbial ones?
-AI
[AlienIntelligence]
The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds the most discoveries, is not "Eureka!" (I found it!) but "Hm...that's funny..." ~Isaac Asimov
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Hear that? It's the sound of a thousand nerds googling "Grover's Mill, New Jersey" up :)