NASA: it snows on Mars
By Brad Sams, 06 July 2009 - 17:04 79 comments
When NASA sent two rovers to Mars they were not quite sure what all they would find. What they ended up finding far exceeded expectations and has proven that the possible foundations for life do exist on other planets.
The scientists were eventually able to conclude that cloud formations do form on the planet and they can, in fact, make it snow on Mars. Scientists were able to observe this phenomenon using the LIDAR instrument (Light Detection and Ranging).
"But the really amazing data came from the LIDAR instrument, which was able to track the formation of the clouds at the atmosphere's boundary layer. Cloud formation became more pronounced as the summer gradually faded and the atmosphere cooled at night, and the scientists were eventually able to detect cirrus-like clouds as they dropped 'tilted vertical sheets' of ice particles back to the surface of the planet. In short, they watched it snow."
Scientists have been able to conclude that Mars does have an active water cycle on the planet but it is presumed that the cycle is dying as the planet appears to have had, at one point, flowing rivers.
What this all means to us is that the possibility for life outside of our planet, while remote, is completely possible. At some point, man may have to leave this planet, and this new discovery of liquid water greatly increases the odds of longer-term human survival.
Comments (79)
ObiWanToby - 06 July 2009 - 17:06
I hope we can continue to fund and see value in these expeditions. It is just so neat. Related to space, I highly recommend watching "James May On the Moon". It is available out there.
master2k27 - 06 July 2009 - 17:19
good show !
Lord Ba'al - 07 July 2009 - 00:27
So it does snow on Mars... now they just need to tell the Mars Rover how to build a snow man :D
bobbytunda - 06 July 2009 - 17:09
how nice
+Odom - 06 July 2009 - 17:16
What? So that Transformer video was not real??
superhuman - 07 July 2009 - 00:24
Transformer is from a comic book. How come can it be real???
paokun - 06 July 2009 - 17:17
Great. If only our life was long enough to see how life will evolve..
vladtm - 06 July 2009 - 18:45
It's just a matter of time and public knowledge until we defeat death and move to other things like travel and exploration to other places in out neighborhood
rheostat - 06 July 2009 - 21:02
Defeat death? I certainly hope not. The world would be unbearably overpopulated within a generation of a death cure.
GreatStalin - 06 July 2009 - 22:05
That's crazy talk. We'd only make sure the rich people could get it.
Solid Knight - 06 July 2009 - 22:14
The end of natural death will be the death of man.
C_Guy - 06 July 2009 - 22:31
Yup. Or we could put tax dollars where they are really needed. Tough choice.
epple - 07 July 2009 - 00:17
It's already overpopulated.
ThaCrip - 07 July 2009 - 00:24
100 percent right!
so even though the concept of 'living forever' sounds cool. in reality i think it's a bad idea and hope i aint around if that day ever comes true.
Science can be good but stuff like that is trying to be like God etc. just a bad idea but i honestly don't think it's possible to live forever because even if you drastically slowed the rate in which we age, we will eventually still die or even if you made it to where you don't age at all and your in perfect health it still would seem likely that you would eventually die due to some accident etc.
FoxieFoxie - 07 July 2009 - 07:31
so even though the concept of 'living forever' sounds cool. in reality i think it's a bad idea and hope i aint around if that day ever comes true.
Okay, you are wrong.
If I could life forever, would be able to learn so much, keep increasing my knowledge on everything, just life a life and forget about such things.
smooth_criminal1990 - 08 July 2009 - 11:57
so even though the concept of 'living forever' sounds cool. in reality i think it's a bad idea and hope i aint around if that day ever comes true.
Science can be good but stuff like that is trying to be like God etc. just a bad idea but i honestly don't think it's possible to live forever because even if you drastically slowed the rate in which we age, we will eventually still die or even if you made it to where you don't age at all and your in perfect health it still would seem likely that you would eventually die due to some accident etc.
Meh, and people would get bored of it eventually. Seriously.
Omen1393 - 06 July 2009 - 17:23
I wonder if it would be possible to give life to Mars. I mean, what if we planted a few trees on the planet and gave it a sufficient supply of soil and water. I'm sure there has to be CO2 on Mars. Eventually the trees would help to produce oxygen for the planet and it would be inhabitable. Of course that would only take a few thousand years to do.
MioTheGreat - 06 July 2009 - 17:28
Mars has no magnetosphere. Solar wind would make things very harsh on the surface.
reverseswing - 06 July 2009 - 17:28
you cannot just change things like that - Mars is outside the habitable zone, meaning it's either too hot during the day or too cold at night or both and this cannot be changed unless you figure out how to move an entire planet - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Habitable_zone-en.svg
roadwarrior - 06 July 2009 - 20:03
That's not exactly true. The habitability of a planet isn't only affected by where it is in the solar system. For example, Venus would be habitable if it weren't for the runaway overheating caused by all of the volcanos spewing out CO2. Likewise, Mars could be made habitable by intentionally introducing global warming in a controlled manner.