redsquirrel Posted September 28, 2015 Share Posted September 28, 2015 20 mins and counting. NYT just announced that it will be that scientists have found definitive signs of liquid water on present day Mars. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted September 28, 2015 Author Share Posted September 28, 2015 http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/29/science/space/mars-life-liquid-water.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=second-column-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&_r=0 In a paper published in the journal Nature Geoscience, Dr. McEwen and other scientists identified waterlogged molecules — salts of a type known as perchlorates — in readings from orbit. “That’s a direct detection of water in the form of hydration of salts,†Dr. McEwen said. “There pretty much has to have been liquid water recently present to produce the hydrated salt.†By “recently,†Dr. McEwen said he meant “days, something of that order.†. . . Many mysteries remain. For one, scientists do not know where the water is coming from. “There are two basic origins for the water: from above or from below,†Dr. McEwen said. The perchlorates could be acting like a sponge, absorbing moisture out of the air, but measurements indicate very low humidity on Mars — only enough for 10 microns, or about 1/2,500th of an inch, of rain across the planet if all of the wetness were wrung out of the air. That idea cannot be entirely ruled out if the lower part of the atmosphere turns out more humid than currently thought. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trulycrabby Posted September 28, 2015 Share Posted September 28, 2015 It's water in liquid form on the surface of Mars! Whee! :hurray: :party: 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne in CA Posted September 28, 2015 Share Posted September 28, 2015 Wow! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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