Probe finds icy sea on Mars
p2pnet.net OT News:- Might there be life on Mars?
The possibility has been raised by what look like the rafts of fragmented sea ice that lie off the coast of Antarctica on Earth.
The picture on the right, taken by the high resolution stereo camera on board ESA’s Mars Express spacecraft, shows what appears to be a dust-covered frozen sea near the Martian equator, says the ESA site.
“It shows a flat plain, part of the Elysium Planitia, that is covered with irregular blocky shapes.”
And there’s, “abundant evidence for Mars being warm and wet in the past but today it appears relatively dry, with water ice confined to the planet’s polar caps,” says the Daily Telegraph.
“The Elysium region on Mars, where thick ice has been left behind by a former sea. Now the Mars Express has found a frozen sea, surviving as blocks of pack ice just under the surface five degrees north of the Martian equator – the first discovery of a large body of water beyond the polar ice caps.
“There is also evidence of excessive levels of methane in the same spot. This is ’suggestive’ that methane-belching bacteria may lurk there, according to Prof Jan-Peter Muller of University College London.”
The findings have, “driven fevered speculation, however,” says the story, adding:
“Last week, Nasa issued an unusual denial of a report that its researchers saw strong evidence for life, based in part on atmospheric methane readings.”
ESA says there’ll be a Mars Express media briefing tomorrow to present the main conclusions of the First Mars Express Science Conference.
It’ll take take place at ESA’s European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC), Noordwijk, the Netherlands, at 14:00 CET in the Newton room.
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See:-
ESA site – Mars Express, ESA, February 23, 2005
greatest threats – Spacecraft finds elements that mean there could be life under this Martian landscape, News Telegraph, February 23, 2005
February 27th, 2005 at 4:28 am
Interesting, but wtf does this have to do with p2p?
Just curious, but has RIAA or MPAA started suing for the water on mars, cuz someone is trading it on eDonkey?