A MARS A DAY

Hi Woodsy, my Lego Mars rover is now finished! 

Its latest discovery on the Red planet hints that there may be life there! 

A belated Happy New Year to you and all the Moonbasers. 

Will O.

UK

Is there or isn't there?

Much is being made about the presence of 'organic' compounds discovered in Jezero Crater on Mars, by the Perseverance Rover recently. News headlines seem to infer that it is proof of life on the red planet, or at least a smoking gun, to indicate that it was present in the distant past. However, we are coming up to the 'silly season' for the press and perhaps the information is being misrepresented.

The official JPL Mars Perseverance site has nothing in the news section recently, to indicate such findings and the story behind the headlines, as published in Nature, is keen to point out that the molecules, although organic, are not necessarily evidence of life and only increase the 'possibility of a possibility'. JPL say that the compounds may have been deposited from a meteor shower, or have been created naturally. 

The original Viking Lander mission, over 40 years ago apparently discovered traces of salient compounds, but it is suggested that the scientific processes, used to detect the presence of life, may have accidentally destroyed it again. One of the experiments used by the probe, added water to the samples and scientist now think that it may have been too much for the delicate dehydrated organics.

https://www.space.com/41689-nasa-viking-mars-life-search-gil-levin.html

So for now, the bug hunt must continue..

https://www.reuters.com/technology/space/nasa-rover-reveals-new-evidence-about-organic-molecules-mars-2023-07-13/

 https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/news/