NASA Announces Discovery Of Free-Flowing Water On Mars
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — NASA announced Monday that a source of free-flowing water has been discovered on the surface of Mars.
Mars appears to have flowing streams of salty water, at least in the summer, scientists reported Monday in a finding that could have major implications for the possibility of life on the planet.
Scientists in 2008 confirmed the existence of frozen water on Mars. But the latest observations from an instrument aboard NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter strongly support the longtime theory that salt water in liquid form flows down certain Martian slopes each summer, according to the researchers.
"Mars just got more interesting," NASA said via Twitter before holding a news conference at its Washington headquarters. The space agency called the results "a major science finding."
Jim Green, NASA Director of Planetary Science, told reporters that "under certain circumstances, liquid water has been found on Mars."
Signatures of hydrated minerals were detected on slopes where mysterious streaks are seen on the surface of Mars that appeared to ebb and flow over time. Scientists say they darkened and appeared to flow down steep slopes during warm seasons, then fade in cooler seasons. The streaks appeared in several locations on Mars when temperatures were above -10 degrees Fahrenheit, and disappeared at colder times.
"Our quest on Mars has been to 'follow the water,' in our search for life in the universe, and now we have convincing science that validates what we've suspected," John Grunsfeld, astronaut and associate administrator of NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington, said in a statement. "This is a significant development, as it appears to confirm that water -- albeit briny -- is flowing today on the surface of Mars."
Scientists have known for decades that Mars, which is almost completely covered in ice, contains water, but most of it lies trapped far beneath the surface, inaccessible to human explorers. The discovery of a free-flowing water source on the planet means that a manned mission to Mars could soon get off the ground.
Bruce Betts, science director of The Planetary Society, told KNX 1070 NEWSRADIO scientists are still working to better understand the conditions in which liquid water can thrive on Mars.
"Liquid water is not stable on the surface of Mars. It acts like dry ice on earth, so it goes straight from solid water ice to water vapor," said Betts. "But what they've found now is evidence of salty minerals, kind of a leftover, after liquid water looks like it's been flowing recently."
Because water is essential to life, the findings could boost the notion of life on Mars. The researchers said in the journal Nature Geoscience that further exploration is warranted to determine whether any microscopic life exists on the planet.
The source of the water is still a mystery. Scientists noted it could be melting ice, an underground aquifer, water vapor from the thin Martian atmosphere, or some combination.
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter which has been circling the red planet since 2006.
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