Scientists link linear features on Mars to water
Posted: Wed, Feb 12, 2014, 6:27 AM ET (1127 GMT)
Planetary scientists analyzing data from a NASA spacecraft believe flowing water is the most likely explanation for a series of linear features seen on crater walls on Mars, but say that they do not have conclusive evidence water caused the features. Scientists examined features called recurring slope lineae (RSL), dark streaks often seen on steep slopes like crater walls that appear every Martian year. Spectral analysis of the features by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter turned up no evidence of water or salts in the RSL features studied, but they did find "distinct and consistent" signatures for ferric and ferrous minerals different from the rest fo the landscape. Scientists writing in a paper in Nature Geoscience acknowledge that they don't have a "smoking gun" for water, but that they cannot identify a mechanism for creating the RSL features that doesn't involve water.
Planetary scientists analyzing data from a NASA spacecraft believe flowing water is the most likely explanation for a series of linear features seen on crater walls on Mars, but say that they do not have conclusive evidence water caused the features. Scientists examined features called recurring slope lineae (RSL), dark streaks often seen on steep slopes like crater walls that appear every Martian year. Spectral analysis of the features by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter turned up no evidence of water or salts in the RSL features studied, but they did find "distinct and consistent" signatures for ferric and ferrous minerals different from the rest fo the landscape. Scientists writing in a paper in Nature Geoscience acknowledge that they don't have a "smoking gun" for water, but that they cannot identify a mechanism for creating the RSL features that doesn't involve water.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
Manufacturing defect blamed for lost nozzle on second Vulcan launch
Posted: Sun, Mar 16 3:21 PM ET (1921 GMT) |
|
news links
|
|
Tuesday, March 18
These Space Companies Compete for Lucrative NASA Contracts—They Also Support Each Other
New York Observer — 5:51 am ET (0951 GMT) History-making Blue Ghost lunar lander sends one last message from the moon
CNN — 5:51 am ET (0951 GMT) U.S. Space Force To Award 2 Satcom Programs No Earlier Than Mid-2025
Aviation Week — 5:49 am ET (0949 GMT) Blue Origin rocket engine arrives at Museum of Flight
KIRO-TV Seattle — 5:49 am ET (0949 GMT) Outgoing Commerce Official Shreds Elon Musk’s Starlink in Final Email
The New Republic — 5:46 am ET (0946 GMT) |
