A rock analysis shows the necessary components for sustaining life.
By Colin Lecher Posted 03.12.2013 at 1:47 pm 9 Comments

Powdered Rock
Powdered Rock NASA

Only a little while after turning itself back on after a glitch stuck it in safe mode, Curiosity's chemical analysis of rock samples show something amazing: chemical evidence ancient Mars could've supported life.

Curiosity used a pair of its instruments, Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) and Chemistry and Mineralogy (CheMin), to retrieve data on a powdered rock sample dug up last month, and scientists have uncovered chemical signs of life in it: the presence of sulfur, nitrogen, hydrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, and carbon point to a planet that could once keep microbes alive. The sulfates and sulfides, particularly, could've been used by tiny organisms as a source of energy, something Earth-bound microbes do, too.

Curiosity has been exploring near an ancient riverbed that scientists already suspected would've been ripe to keep life, well, alive. (The sample itself came a few hundred yards away from the stream bed.) The chemical analysis gives that theory a boost. Unlike other parts of Mars, this area wouldn't have been too harsh for any microbes to survive.

About 20 percent of the sample is made up of clay minerals, which could've been formed when water on the Red Planet mixed with minerals. Scientists also found a mixture of oxidized, partly oxidized, and un-oxidized chemicals, which was hinted at back when the sample was first taken and showed a decidedly not-red interior of Mars.

Scientists will be confirming the results by testing another rock sample.

[NASA]

9 Comments

Link to this comment
AnyIcon
03/12/13 at 4:21 pm

"Curiosity Finds Evidence That Ancient Mars Could Have Supported Life"
could have,
kind of,
maybe,
sort of,

I adore reading about Curiosity,
but this article starting as a fact, then
falling back to a propsal\theory does little.

Reading the article as a theory, reads great though!

Link to this comment
rlb2
03/12/13 at 4:29 pm

That is good news, when will they release the better news admitting to finding organics and possible life? The Phoenix Lander Science team also stated that "all the necessary ingredients to sustain life was under the Lander" "you probably can't grow strawberries but you can grow asparagus"

Now look at this YouTube time lapse images of microbial like life forms moving in the Phoenix Microscopic Imager, it is not fake it is time lapse images from the Phoenix Landers Microscopic Imager anyone can access these images from the NASA - JPL Phoenix Landers site....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUHZ-aMbZHw

Ron Bennett

Link to this comment
fghrtfgjtrj
03/12/13 at 9:34 pm

in order to thank everyone, characteristic, novel style, varieties, low price and good quality, and the low sale price. Thank everyone

http://al.ly/3JF

http://al.ly/3JF

http://al.ly/3JF

http://al.ly/3JF

│＼＿╭╭╭╭╭＿／│ 　
　│　　　　　　　　　│＼｜／ 　
　│　●　　　　　●　│—☆— 　
　│○　╰┬┬┬╯　○│／｜＼ 　
　│　　　╰—╯　　　／ 　
　╰—┬○————┬○╯ 　
　　╭│　　　　　│╮ 　
　　╰┴—————┴╯ sdgweg

Link to this comment
shutterpod
03/12/13 at 10:16 pm

A Scientific Theory is generally regarded as the best explanation of how all sorts of data inter-relate.

All the data on gravity contribute to the Theory of Gravity...

All the data supporting evolution contribute to the Theory of Evolution...

So forth and so on with all Scientific Theories.

Scientific Theories aren't guesses... don't confuse them with hypothesis...

Link to this comment
Roboy23
03/13/13 at 12:14 am

They should have made a flying robot so that it could do a search around the Mars Planet and that would be interesting to follow by all the people. I am building and experimenting on a Pulse-drive that you don't' have to sling shot your rocket around the planet. it is not as fast as Warp drive but definitely a spaceship can travel faster.

Link to this comment
shutterpod
03/13/13 at 1:18 am

The atmosphere on Mars is too thin to even support any useful balloon flights, let alone aerodynamic flight...

Link to this comment
Roboy23
03/13/13 at 2:12 pm

Aerodynamic and atmospheric issues are irrelevant, I am talking about pulse-drive you don't need air to fly a spacecraft kinetic-energy is sufficient enough to throw a mass into large space.

Link to this comment
quatra1001
03/28/13 at 2:21 pm

Hey. Sounds familiar. Must be because of the hundred times I've read it before. Now, of course, we as egocentric humans like to think of "life" as something comparable to our type or another recognizable form and discard everything else.

Link to this comment
LogicLowkey
04/02/13 at 12:11 pm

But you dont know where you are excatly going to go? Thats the problem you will be out of the differnt distance ...


140 years of Popular Science at your fingertips.



Popular Science+ For iPad

Each issue has been completely reimagined for your iPad. See our amazing new vision for magazines that goes far beyond the printed page



Download Our App

Stay up to date on the latest news of the future of science and technology from your iPhone or Android phone with full articles, images and offline viewing



Follow Us On Twitter

Featuring every article from the magazine and website, plus links from around the Web. Also see our PopSci DIY feed


April 2013: How It Works

For our annual How It Works issue, we break down everything from the massive Falcon Heavy rocket to a tiny DNA sequencer that connects to a USB port. We also take a look at an ambitious plan for faster-than-light travel and dive into the billion-dollar science of dog food.

Plus the latest Legos, Cadillac's plug-in hybrid, a tractor built for the apocalypse, and more.


Online Content Director: Suzanne LaBarre | Email
Senior Editor: Paul Adams | Email
Associate Editor: Dan Nosowitz | Email
Assistant Editor: Colin Lecher | Email
Assistant Editor:Rose Pastore | Email

Contributing Writers:
Rebecca Boyle | Email
Kelsey D. Atherton | Email
Francie Diep | Email
Shaunacy Ferro | Email

circ-top-header.gif
circ-cover.gif