What do you think is NASA's "big discovery" of mars?

[m420p]

It's all over the web but they won't announce what it is until the data has been confirmed. My first guess would be Methane or other proof that life once existed on mars. Water, gold or other precious metals are other possibilities. It's pretty obvious to me water was once flowing on the surface of mars. Dried up river beds, valleys and large chloride salt deposits which only take place on earth where liquid water is present.

 

[zat]

I think they found Jimmy Hoffa. Ok seriously, I think it is related to water like an indicator that water existed.

 

[Trolling]

Probably smurfs.

 

[D3monic]

I thought they already found the evidence that water existed there. Lame if they just hype up the same old news.

 

[gioua]

I thought they already found the evidence that water existed there. Lame if they just hype up the same old news.

I think they have found that as well.. at least strong evidence of it.. I think they found certain types of minerals... perhaps a meteor or something along the lines

 

[OGEvilgenius]

[youtube]kGo1-EVrsx8[/youtube]

 

[technical dan]

m420p thats what im thinkin. methane or another organic compound that microorganisms are capable of producing. I think they have made enough noise about water that they wouldnt be keeping evidence of it secret in this manner.

 

[canniboss]

http://youtu.be/Jth4yATniS4

 

[Dr Kynes]

methane does not mean life. it just means carbon and oxygen are present.

theres methane all over the gas giants, and nobody is suggesting that has a biological source.

im betting on sedimentary layers showing surface water in the past.

 

[Trolling]

They've already announced that a while ago, is this thing still a secret or? Haven't really been paying attention.

 

[m420p]

methane does not mean life. it just means carbon and oxygen are present.

theres methane all over the gas giants, and nobody is suggesting that has a biological source.

im betting on sedimentary layers showing surface water in the past.

You are correct in saying Methane does not prove that there is life, but it certainly suggests it. If not produced by biological processes then it must have been produced from geological processes. In hindsight I should not have said "proof."

"nobody is suggesting that has a biological source." I'd have to strongly disagree...


"Nobody":

“Based on evidence, what we do have is, unequivocally, the conditions for the emergence of life were present on Mars — period, end of story,” said Michael J. Mumma, a senior scientist for NASA at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., who led one of three teams that have made still-controversial claims of detecting methane in Mars’s atmosphere. “So life certainly could have arisen there.”

“Only small amounts of methane are present in the martian atmosphere, coming from very localized sources. We’ve looked at changes in concentrations of the gas and found that there are seasonal and also annual variations. The source of the methane could be geological activity or it could be biological --- we can’t tell at this point. However, it appears that the upper limit for methane lifetime is less than a year in the martian atmosphere,” said Fonti.

“It’s evident that the highest concentrations are associated with the warmest seasons and locations where there are favorable geological -- and hence biological -- conditions such as geothermal activity and strong hydration. The higher energy available in summer could trigger the release of gases from geological processes or outbreaks of biological activity,” said Fonti.

Source:
http://www.dailygalaxy.com/my_weblog/2012/04/the-mars-methane-mystery-a-sign-of-ancient-life-or-an-earth-based-illusion-well-know-soon.html

 

[m420p]

.............

 

[m420p]

They've already announced that a while ago, is this thing still a secret or? Haven't really been paying attention.

Whatever their "big discovery" is it's a new one...
http://news.yahoo.com/nasa-curiositys-history-changing-discovery-221110775.html

Thinking about it now I doubt it's methane, "history changing" wouldn't be something that was basically already known just not measured and documented. My second guess is now actual living bacteria or maybe something else measurable that proves life was once on mars.


Although, I did find some more info that suggests methane could be a possible announcement:

"The scientists thought they had made an exciting breakthrough earlier, when a tool picked up some methane in the Mars atmosphere, which would have been a first — and could indicate that life previously existed on Mars. They had to test to make sure the methane didn't travel with the Rover from earth, though, and once they did their due diligence it turned out the methane piggy-backed from earth. The team was predictably deflated."

However:

"John Grotzinger, the principal investigator for the mission, tells NPR's Joe Palca in an interview that aired today that his team has found something really, really cool on Mars with Curiosity's SAM soil-collecting device: "This data is gonna be one for the history books. It's looking really good," Grotzinger exclaimed. Unfortunately, NASA won't be telling us what said cool secret is until they run a bunch of tests to make sure what they found is authentic."

So to me it has to be something measurable that proves there were once living organisms on mars.

More Info on the "New Discovery":

"According to Information Week Government, data that NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory scientist John Grotzinger told National Public Radio was "for the history books," will be revealed in early December. The annoucement is expected to come during a meeting of the American Geophysical Union, December 3 - 7 in San Francisco. "

Source:
http://www.govexec.com/excellence/promising-practices/2012/11/so-what-nasa-curiositys-history-changing-discovery/59699/

 

[Dr Kynes]

You are correct in saying Methane does not prove that there is life, but it certainly suggests it. If not produced by biological processes then it must have been produced from geological processes. In hindsight I should not have said "proof."

"nobody is suggesting that has a biological source." I'd have to strongly disagree...


"Nobody":

“Based on evidence, what we do have is, unequivocally, the conditions for the emergence of life were present on Mars — period, end of story,” said Michael J. Mumma, a senior scientist for NASA at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., who led one of three teams that have made still-controversial claims of detecting methane in Mars’s atmosphere. “So life certainly could have arisen there.”

“Only small amounts of methane are present in the martian atmosphere, coming from very localized sources. We’ve looked at changes in concentrations of the gas and found that there are seasonal and also annual variations. The source of the methane could be geological activity or it could be biological --- we can’t tell at this point. However, it appears that the upper limit for methane lifetime is less than a year in the martian atmosphere,” said Fonti.

“It’s evident that the highest concentrations are associated with the warmest seasons and locations where there are favorable geological -- and hence biological -- conditions such as geothermal activity and strong hydration. The higher energy available in summer could trigger the release of gases from geological processes or outbreaks of biological activity,” said Fonti.

Source:
http://www.dailygalaxy.com/my_weblog/2012/04/the-mars-methane-mystery-a-sign-of-ancient-life-or-an-earth-based-illusion-well-know-soon.html

i said, "theres methane all over the gas giants, and nobody is suggesting that has a biological source. " this is fact, not opinion.

methane on mars might HINT at the possibility of life, but methane in the atmosphere of jupiter saturn and neptune does not even suggest life. it suggests methane from NON BIOLOGICAL sources. thee is no conceivable form of life we might recognize as such which could survive on a gas giant's "surface" or in it's atmosphere.

your source does not pertain to the gas giants' methane, it pertains to the martian methane. the possibility of life producing methane on mars is NOT evidence of a similar function in jupiter's atmosphere

 

[skunkd0c]

sounds like they have discovered Brick tops hidden hydroponic mars grow op

 

[Dr Kynes]

DEA's gonna have a bitch of a time kicking that door in at 3 am.

course they'll probably raid pluto by mistake and shoot a couple aliens when they are reaching for their pants.

 

[m420p]

i said, "theres methane all over the gas giants, and nobody is suggesting that has a biological source. " this is fact, not opinion.

methane on mars might HINT at the possibility of life, but methane in the atmosphere of jupiter saturn and neptune does not even suggest life. it suggests methane from NON BIOLOGICAL sources. thee is no conceivable form of life we might recognize as such which could survive on a gas giant's "surface" or in it's atmosphere.

your source does not pertain to the gas giants' methane, it pertains to the martian methane. the possibility of life producing methane on mars is NOT evidence of a similar function in jupiter's atmosphere

I misunderstood you.

 

[mindphuk]

sounds like they have discovered Brick tops hidden hydroponic mars grow op

Mars Needs Weed

 

[mindphuk]

NASA Downplays Rumors of Major Mars Rover Discovery

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover has sparked the curiosity of the media and the blogosphere, with widespread speculation as to whether one of its laboratory instruments has made a major discovery in the quest to find out if the red planet ever hosted a habitable environment.
NASA officials, however, are downplaying the speculation, saying the results, expected to be presented Monday at the American Geophysical Union's fall meeting in San Francisco, are scientifically interesting, but not in and of themselves "earthshaking."

 

[cannabineer]

NASA Downplays Rumors of Major Mars Rover Discovery

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover has sparked the curiosity of the media and the blogosphere, with widespread speculation as to whether one of its laboratory instruments has made a major discovery in the quest to find out if the red planet ever hosted a habitable environment.
NASA officials, however, are downplaying the speculation, saying the results, expected to be presented Monday at the American Geophysical Union's fall meeting in San Francisco, are scientifically interesting, but not in and of themselves "earthshaking."

Which probably means that they have more support for past liquid water, but nothing current or recent. ~sigh~ cn