I imagine that I am not alone in the fondness and affiliation I have for our ‘sister’ planet, Mars? With it’s intertwined majestic quality and our natural drive to find similarities in our understandings of the universe; as well as our actuality of finding multiple commonalities on this red planet. To understand what may have happened, is the ever important key to this puzzle; especially if reformation is part of the goal.
The most intriguing aspect of our sister planet, is that it apparently contains the very same life granting ingredient as our own planet – Water. That we have discovered various signs of water existing on the surface, like the existing ice caps and sub terrain ice sheets as well as surface features like gullies and components like silica, should be of astounding interest to all humans. You might ask: If Mars has many of the right components for life, what is wrong with the recipe? Of particular issue is the atmosphere, or lack there of.
The atmosphere of Mars is a hundred times thinner than that of Earth. Due to atmospheric pressure differences; liquid water boils on Mars at as low a temperature as ten degrees Celsius, as is discussed in this article. To understand this in more ‘earthly’ terms – the site uses the difference in temperatures needed to boil on different altitude’s on Earth as an example. If you are at a high altitude (a mountain for instance) water boils at a lower temperature. Mars’s window of opportunity for liquid water is grossly smaller than that of Earths; because, its atmospheric pressure makes water boil at such a common temperature as the planets freezing point; as a result, water exists primarily in solid or gas form.
However, as ice exists in liquid form in our own extreme cold zones, amongst frozen ice, it is possible that the same could have taken place or could take place on Mars. If the atmosphere was only a wee bit thicker, Mars would have oceans – do I sense some human intervention possibilities? And then to Europa, and then we take over the Univerrrssse… anyway, another mentioning is the assistance sodium provides in maintaining liquid water at lower temperatures allowing a larger window of liquid formation (as is also the case on Earth.) Maybe with a little interference, this planet could start or once again harbor life.
Lastly, the discovery and analysis of the seven caves on Mars are worth following, as this find teases our hypothesis of life being under the surface, as liquid water has a higher probability of flowing if protected from the frigid surface. These caves are seen as an important revelation of possible access points into the planet's depths that may or may not reveal life or life granting/sustaining liquid water.
If this doesn't amaze you, what in the Universe can?
Update: Wow, it's landed safely!
Update: 08/01/2008
WATER!!!!! This is such a fantastic discovery! Now, we had our presumptions of course. But, what it must have been to see the signature of Water appear on the testing equipment back at NASA. What could have been, what is and what could be, is now all up for discovery.
Water is the life granting element here on earth and to find it elsewhere is not astonishing, but encouraging. I am so happy to be alive at a time when the progression of discovery is so remarkable.
KAS
Here is an article discussing the first pictures in the Times and here's another one on space.newscientist.com.
KAS
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