ABSTRACT In this paper, the great dispute of whether or not there is real evidence of life on martian meteorites is discussed. Findings of carbon globules, nanocrystal magnetites, and rod-shaped objects on ALH84001, Nakhla and Yamata 593 suggest biogenic processes once occurred on Mars. Furthermore, past atmospheric conditions and a current abundance of methane gas build more justification to martian life. Many of these discoveries are accused of being accounted for by either terrestrial contamination or abiotic processes, but composition analysis and model experiments show that contamination cannot be held fully responsible. It is concluded that martian meteorites do provide insight and valid evidence for extraterrestrial life. …show more content…
1996). Confirmation of these biological artefacts is important as it would finally resolve the debate of the century. The breakthrough of fossilized nanobacteria on martian meteorites was the first real evidence supporting life beyond our planet, escalating the already controversial subject. It has allowed fantasies of aliens and U. F. O.’s to essentially become a reality. Although many continue to disagree with this statement and accuse findings to be irrelevant, further research on the composition Mars and its meteorites have provided justice to extraterrestrial life.
MARS AND ITS ATMOSPHERE Before even considering extraterrestrial life in the first place, the necessary elements must be available. As mentioned above, the red planet was once warmer and wetter, providing ideal conditions for life. The availability of water is of utmost importance when regarding life. On Mars’ surface, the existence of carved channel networks provides evidence for possible floods in the past (Baker 2001). In addition, the presence of “contraction-crack polygons” cover great distances over the martian landscape and mimic terrestrial ice-wedge terrains of permafrost regions (Baker, V. R. 2001). It is also uncratered, signifying potential water associated activities in the recent past. The atmosphere on Mars used to be much thicker than it is presently. The extensive
The planet Mars is a red plant that is found in the Solar System in the Milky Way Galaxy one planets farther from the sun than Earth. The planet Mars has a very thin atmosphere full of primarily carbon dioxide. The surface of Mars is very dusty and rocky because of volcanoes. The geology of Mars is different from Earth in many ways including the amount of volcanoes, mountains, valleys, and internal makeup.
They have found that there might have been life on Mars at one point and there might still be little bits of life. All they have found so far is evidence of little tiny organisms and bacteria that were once on the surface.
In overcoming the challenges along the way of the mission from launching to impact to egress, it has allowed scientists and organisations such as NASA to gather more information about the nature of the Mars, from the climate to the geology of the planet. The outcome and findings of this mission has been a success and influential in the way we explore other planets to find the possibility of past and/or present life on that planet. The rovers had discovered fluid and other deposits on the surface of the planet, which may indicate that life can survive on this planet. The uncovering of these physical environments has shaped the method and processes undertaken on other missions in order to succeed and deliver the necessary answers to the questions of the possibility of life
In last couple year’s evidence of water on mars has grown exponentially. The geography of Mars suggests that water was once there. This is because they have found runoff channels in the southern highlands and outflow channels that are almost exact to how they are on Earth, which obviously does have water. The Mars Reconnaissance Observer and Mars Express found deposits of clay in the southern highlands that some researchers say is a strong sign that water was there. Some others argue that the clay could be formed by other elements on Mars, such as wind. Also, the Mars Express detected hydrated’ chemical compounds in the surface of rocks over large areas, which means it
Before the sailor flybys in the 1960s, scientist thought Mars had water and life, even if it was just some sort of plantlike lichen. Mars has water, frozen underground and at the polar caps. There is (event(s) or object(s) that prove something) that this water has, in the past and present, flooded the surface in liquid from. Signs of wearing away can be
Most of us are familiar with the panspermia hypothesis – that life can be “seeded” from asteroid, comet, and planetoid contents – but to date, no direct evidence has been discovered. So, why should we consider meteorites to be possible parents? The truth is out there somewhere and these space rocks contain the essentials, as far down as to amino acids. Until now, what has been recovered has been regarded as structured. However, the matter of Tagish Lake arose.
Much to common disbelief, Mars and Earth have many things in common. Some of these factors include similarities in size, inclination, structure, composition and the presence of water on their surfaces (Universe Today, 2016). Mars is the next closest planet to Earth. It withholds all necessary elements needed for life to exist. These include water, carbon dioxide (CO₂) and nitrogen (HowStuffWorks, 2017). There are also unbelievable similarities between Mars’ atmosphere and the Earth’s atmosphere from billions of years ago. Like Mars, when the Earth was first formed it had no oxygen and its atmosphere was comprised of carbon dioxide and nitrogen. Earth was not able to produce oxygen until photosynthetic bacteria developed (HowStuffWorks, 2017). Mars’ atmosphere consists of 95.3% carbon dioxide, 2.7% nitrogen, 1.6% argon and 0.2% oxygen.
The fourth planet from the Sun, which may have been a wet planet, has several distinctive features that have scientists thinking about a chance of surviving on the planet. The surface temperature on Mars is averaging a high of thirty two degrees Fahrenheit (zero degrees Celsius) and a low of negative ninety four degrees Fahrenheit, which is negative seventy degrees Celsius. In July 1996, Dr. David McKay and a team of scientists at the Johnson Space Center discovered fossils of bacteria in a meteorite, ALH84001 that came from Mars. It was found in Allen Hills, Antarctica in 1984, after 12,000 years of being on the surface of Earth. The observed spheres are what are said to be the fossilized bacteria. Organic compounds were found as well, but it turned out to be
Preview Statement: The possibility of life on mars is an extravagant topic to look at. Before that, we must analyze Mars itself along with its conditions. First, we will talk about the ice caps located on Mars. Second, we will examine the water streaks on Mars. Third we will observe if the red planet is inhabitable for humans to conquer it.
Spirit stumbled across rocks that pointed to an earlier, unrulier Mars that was marked by impacts, explosive volcanism and subsurface water [source: NASA Mars]. "Water is key because almost everywhere we find water on Earth we find life," NASA's Web site. However, we are still unsure life existed on Mars.
This confirmation of nucleobases in the Murchison Meteorite shows that the building blocks for life would have been available through the active transporting of material through space onto our planet. The Murchison meteorite is also relevant in this aspect as it discloses a window into the solar system around the time of the formation of our sun. This gives us a look in to the earliest chemistry taking place in our solar system and from it, estimations of the available materials within the solar system can be made. The results confirm the existence of organic compounds already present in the solar system and on the earth. Since we know that these organic compounds make up the nucleobases present in our genetic material today, there is a strong
The change to colder and drier conditions may have forced any ancient life to retreat into the subsurface.9,10 Alternatively, while Mars experienced significant volcanic activity, biological remnants may have been absorbed into ancient rocks, and some organic molecules as an indicator of life on Mars may still remain. Thus, the organic matter within the rock potentially contains information that can be used to determine the past or extant presence of life. On this assumption, if we could show that the production of new living organisms or organelles has occurred independently on
Research was conducted following the failure to find life on Mars in the Viking Lander experiment, by NASA Space Center’s very own Dr. McKay and a team of scientists. They wanted to know if there was life on Mars that wasn’t found in the Viking Lander experiment so they were looking to find life in places other than soil. Sources about possible ancient martian life is in the SNC (Shergotty-Nakhla-Chassigny) class of meteorites that came to Earth following impact events on Mars. (McKay et al 1996) ALH84001 is recognized to be one of the oldest pieces of the Solar system, crystallized more than 4 billion years ago it is thought to have originated from Mars from a time when water existed on the planets surface. The theory is that
(Sony, 2003) Bibliography: Mars (2001) MyPetstop.co.uk [Online] Mars Incorporated.
asteroids, meteors, etc, life forms on Earth could have developed as a result of unintentional microorganism contamination. This idea implies that microorganisms can successfully survive in space, and if subjected randomly to ideal conditions evolution can occur. Evidence for this theory is also relatively strong as tests done on the Murchison meteorite which fell near Murchison, Australia in 1969 revealed it contained over 90 different amino acids (among which nineteen are found in Earth life). Although Panspermia does not directly explain the origin of all life (only its distribution) the synthesis of microorganisms in space could also be justified. If certain compounds were subjected to conditions similar to those of the Miller-Urey experiment, ultraviolet light could be substituted for lightning as a chemical reaction