NASA schedules briefing to announce MAJOR finding on Mars

In summary, the NASA press statement said that they have discovered water on the surface of Mars, and they are calling it a significant find. They are also saying that this could be one of the biggest scientific discoveries of our lifetime.
  • #1
SimplePie
13
0
NASA said in a press statement that it will announce new results from the Mars Global Surveyor, and they are calling it a significant find. And no, I don't think it mentions Cydonia :)

The briefing is today at 1 p.m. EST. I have an idea what it could be, can't wait to see it...

Go to http://www.nasa.gov/ntv" or your NASA channel on cable/satellite for live coverage.

Link to news article: http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2006/dec/HQ_M06186_Mars_Briefing.html.
 
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  • #2
Yep, very impressive stuff indeed...

marlon
 
  • #3
That was a FAST reply by Marlon! I don't think I was even done loading the page :)
 
  • #4
SimplePie said:
That was a FAST reply by Marlon! I don't think I was even done loading the page :)

lol...but i have a very fast pc and network connection.

marlon
 
  • #5
marlon said:
lol...but i have a very fast pc and network connection.

marlon

LOL, being a physics guru has it's financial benefits, eh? :)
 
  • #6
SimplePie said:
LOL, being a physics guru has it's financial benefits, eh? :)

lol indeed, and having good phd funding as well

greets
marlon
 
  • #7
water on mars.

apparently there's water on mars, the next step is colonolization.
(-:
 
  • #8
Got any links? Sounds kind of weird, do you mean they proved there was water on Mars or something?
 
  • #9
the next step is colonolization
I think there might be a few more steps in between. :biggrin:
 
  • #11
Very interesting and shocking indeed.
 
  • #12
This is BIG news... the news conference is going on right now so I don't have ALL the details, but one of the more interesting quotes from the scientists:

Decades ago, scientists were talking about water on Mars billions of years ago. Five years ago, scientists were talking about water on Mars millions of years ago. Today we are talking about water on the surface of Mars right now!

OK, that quote is comming from my short memory bank but that is the big news out of this. More to come...
 
  • #13
I wonder if they will be able to estimate how much water Mars could have under its crust.
 
  • #14
They are saying the water could be reaching the surface from subsurface aquifers, snowmelt, ground ice.

There is a summary of the main points http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/space/12/06/mars.water.ap/index.html" . Keep in mind that the briefing is still ongoing.

This is all too exciting. Can anyone say microbes?
 
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  • #15
That was very interesting!
 
  • #16
Anyone up for a little swim? :)
 
  • #17
Why is finding water on Mars a major finding?
 
  • #18
verty said:
Why is finding water on Mars a major finding?

Water is necessary for life [as we know it] and could provide proof to life on other planets [microscopic organisms in said water].

That, and it means a colony on Mars would have a water supply.
 
  • #19
This could be one of the biggest scientific discoveries of our lifetime.
 
  • #20
I don't see the big deal concerning microbes, but certainly if it means that water might be useful to a future colony then I can see then I can see that it is good.
 
  • #21
verty said:
I don't see the big deal concerning microbes, but certainly if it means that water might be useful to a future colony then I can see then I can see that it is good.

*does a double take* Are you kidding me? You think the possible presence of an alien life form is... not as big a deal as a source of water for a dinky Mars mission?

- Warren
 
  • #22
chroot said:
*does a double take* Are you kidding me? You think the possible presence of an alien life form is... not as big a deal as a source of water for a dinky Mars mission?

- Warren

No kidding! I take that as a personal insult. :biggrin:
 
  • #23
SimplePie said:
This is all too exciting. Can anyone say microbes?
Water + Microbes + Sugar = Alcohol.

Martian brewery and distillery. :biggrin:

Well it won't be Saurian Brandy, but hey it's a start! :tongue2: :biggrin:
 
  • #24
from http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/space/12/06/mars.water.ap/index.html

"This is a squirting gun for water on Mars," said Kenneth Edgett...

(groan... )
 
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  • #25
jtbell said:
from http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/space/12/06/mars.water.ap/index.html

"This is a squirting gun for water on Mars," said Kenneth Edgett...

(groan... )

I almost posted that quote earlier, but I chose to take the high road.

:biggrin:

[edit: I had to laugh when I read it]
 
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  • #26
Alien life, wow. I would think life would be common in the universe.
 
  • #27
Yea I think that if we find microbial life on Mars it would suggest that more intelligent life (perhaps, of course) is probable throughout the billions of galaxies that make up the visible universe. I think that one of the fundamental human questions is "are we alone?" And if we can find bacterial life on mars, the answer could be no we have confirmed that we are here with microbes on Mars :biggrin:.
 
  • #28
verty said:
I don't see the big deal concerning microbes, but certainly if it means that water might be useful to a future colony then I can see then I can see that it is good.

"I don't see the big deal concerning dodos, but if means that bird meat might be useful to a future colony then I can see that it is good."

-Early 16th-century Portuguese explorer
 
  • #29
It's interesting but I don't think finding microbes on Mars, or colonizing Mars should be mankids primary scientific endever. While I think it's cool, I also think it is unlikely to be useful to us until we have a breakthrough in energy production (fathom the implications of efficient fusion energy).
 
  • #30
dontdisturbmycircles said:
Yea I think that if we find microbial life on Mars it would suggest that more intelligent life (perhaps, of course) is probable throughout the billions of galaxies that make up the visible universe.
More intelligent life? We haven't yet found even one!

*crickets chirping...*

(Okay, that was bad!:yuck: )
 
  • #31
I'm a bit skeptical about the big news. Yeah, it's interesting to notice that crater walls have undergone landslides/sandslides over a period of years, but that should be an expected observation, not a surprise. Mars is not the Moon. It has an atmosphere, and may also exhibit seismic activity, so we should see weathering, erosion, and settling. If nothing on the surface ever changed, that would be the more surprising observation. It seems to me that it is a huge stretch to observe little slides on steep slopes and claim that they are proof that liquid water exists on the Martian surface. Great "gee whiz" factor, but pretty shaky science, IMO.
 
  • #32
dontdisturbmycircles said:
Yea I think that if we find microbial life on Mars it would suggest that more intelligent life (perhaps, of course) is probable throughout the billions of galaxies that make up the visible universe. I think that one of the fundamental human questions is "are we alone?" And if we can find bacterial life on mars, the answer could be no we have confirmed that we are here with microbes on Mars :biggrin:.

OTOH, it also doesn't hurt the cause of a solar-system exogenesis; i.e. abiogenesis only occurred once -- on Mars. After a while, life transferred to Earth by riding on Martian ejecta. In this case, life arose only once and I don't think it would suggest that life is widespread throughout the universe.
 
  • #33
I'm curious to find out how the Mars life is doing, those bacteriums we've been sending over on the probes and rovers.
 
  • #34
Well no, definitely not widespread, when I said that it is probable throughout the galaxies I am talking like 5-10 per galaxy. But I guess that is true that it does not rule out that life originated on earth/mars and was transferred elsewhere. But again, on the other hand, it proves that life can exist on planets such as mars, which increases the chance that life will be found elsewhere. I suppose it will depend on what we find (if anything) in that water (eventually)

And also, as turbo-1 pointed out it may not be water at all. So yea, we'll see.
 
  • #35
Wonder what the water tastes like?
 

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