A team of scientists has just discovered the longest organic molecules so far seen on Mars, the fourth planet of the sun and a confusing place to search for humanity for life outside the Earth.
Mars today is not hostage, with great temperature fluctuations, a thin atmosphere, and a clear scarcity of liquid water on the surface of the planet. But according to a new research, Published Today in the facts of the National Academy of Sciences, the large molecules on Mars appears to be ancient life on Earth, raising questions about biological activity on the old Mars.
The molecules are long carbon chains, which contain up to 12 consecutive carbon atoms. The molecules preserved on Mars sat for 3.7 billion years, without hindrance due to geological activity, humidity or heat. The history of the molecules to almost the same time The oldest known signs of life On our planet.
The curiosity played the role of Mars for years, and revealed new details about the planet Ancient environment. The key to that environment is carbon, which is a vital element of life and useful for interconnection molecules, including DNA and RNA. According to the issuance of the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), carbon chains “can show similar features to the fatty acids they produce on Earth through biological activity.”
The discovery of these organic molecules provides decisive visions in potential biological processes on early Mars, but it is clear that it is not evidence of the previous or current life. However, what he tells us is that the building blocks needed for life as we know that they were present – and that Mars may have had the appropriate conditions to support them.
“Although although the source of these organic molecules on Mars cannot be proven in this study, these organic materials could have been formed through geological processes on Mars (non -biological chemical reactions such as water thermal activity) were delivered to the surface of Mars from Mars from meteorites, or they are from the revenues that refrain from the old association. Gizmodo.
The team, which included scientists with CNRS and many other institutions, has reached the results of the sample analysis in the MARS (Sam) laboratory on the curiosity. SAM contains gas chromatology and bloc, which makes it possible to identify the isolated molecules in the samples collected by Rover. Curiosity See the organic matter In Mars clay before, the new research describes the longest chains that have been determined yet. Finding long carbon chains on Mars is an important matter because it indicates that NASA scientists have the right path in the way they are looking for signs of life – or at least, things that are subject to life on Earth.
Curiosity is still strong, but the caliphs are in his mission to understand the old Mars past on the way. Esa Exomars Important, is scheduled to be launched in 2028 and joint Nasa-SASA Mars sample Odeh The task will help scientists to evaluate the composition of Mars better in the old past – and the agency, the capabilities of ancient life on its surface.
The “long -chainly and preserved hydrocarbons (and not fully destroyed by exposure to ionized radiation) in ancient sedimentary rocks on Mars, enhances the current strategy to search for the signs of ancient life in the nearby Mars surface that may share similar properties with life on Earth,” he added two cover. “From the meteorite analysis and samples that have been returned from Bennu and Ryugu asteroids by Osiris-Rex and Hayabusa2 missions, we know that the chemical building blocks of life that include amino acids (used to form proteins), carboxyl acids (used in cell membranes) and components of dna. Delivery to Mars.
“But the question of one million dollars is: Is the life that constitutes the organic chemistry required to move from these basic chemical building blocks to larger and more complex structures such as proteins and DNA acids found in the cells that occur on Mars?” , Glavin added.
The liquid water was found once in the vast tanks and lakes on Mars. Now dried up for a long time, the Space Agency is assigned to explore those suburbs that were one day, and seek signs of primitive life similar to those that arouse the presence in the wet Earth parts. Scientists have seen Signs of liquid water Below Mars, although these speculative results will require more scrutiny before scientists can definitely say.
-
A replica of SAM in NASA Godard. Photo: Caroline Frescentite
In 2023, Rover found perseverance Maintaining organic molecules On Mars – there is no emphasis on the existence of life once on the Red Planet, but an indication that the conditions are as long as we know before.
New ways It can make it easy to discover signs of life on Mars, and may explain how life that might be there was when it became the Red Planet Paradise and non -hospitable.
Beyond Mars, the CNRS version stated that the same international teams will build a tool like Sam dragonflyQuadcopter that will explore Titan Sature’s Titan starting in the mid -twentieth century.
https://gizmodo.com/app/uploads/2024/12/perseverance-rover-tracks-mars.jpg
Source link