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Science Mars may be more Mars-like than Earth-like after corrosive chemical found
Science Mars may be more Mars-like than Earth-like after corrosive chemical found | Mars may be more Mars-like than Earth-like after corrosive chemical found |
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| by William Atkins | |
| Wednesday, 06 August 2008 | |
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Science DiscussionsAccording to the August 4, 2008 news release “NASA spacecraft analyzing Martian soil data," by NASA, the Wet Chemistry Laboratory (WCL), which is part of the Microscopy, Electrochemistry, and Conductivity Analyzer (MECA) onboard the Phoenix Lander, has indicated that it found the presence of the chemical compound perchlorate, a highly oxidizing substance, on the planet Mars. Percholates are salts derived from perchloric acid (HClO4). On Earth, perchlorates are used as thyroid medicines, as an oxidizer in rocket fuel and explosives, and are found as an ingredient in fertilizers, fireworks and pyrotechnics, and other similar products. It is also considered by the United States as an environmental contaminant on Earth. Earlier, beginning on Friday, August 1, 2008, rumors were a-flyin’ about the possibility of microbial life being present on Mars. The magazine Aviation Week and Space Technology was at the center of the news, after reporting that the president and the White House had been notified about the potential for life on Mars being discovered—that is the “'potential' for Mars to support life." The White House denied being notified. [Florida Today, “Life on Mars? NASA dishes today”] The scuttlebutt on the Internet was so pervasive that Phoenix Mars Lander representatives were spreading the news that they had not contacted the White House and that life had not been found on Mars. However, since that time (on Sunday, August 3, 2008), the Thermal and Evolved-Gas Analyzer (TEGA), also onboard Phoenix, analyzed Martian soil, and did not detect any perchlorates. However, the WCL findings of perchlorate makes the presence of life on Mars (either today or in the past) less likely because the chemical compound is not known to be very supportive for the existence of life. Additional informtation on Martian soil, life on Mars, analysis of data from the Phoenix spacecraft, and perchlorate, appears on page two. |
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