Kamis, 26 April 2012

Shattering news? Huge sheets of volcanic glass on Mars could be a haven for life

Shattering news? Huge sheets of volcanic glass on Mars could be a haven for life

  • Four million square miles of volcanic glass detected on Martian surface
  • Evidence of lava interacting with water
  • Volcanic glass could be 'best place' to look for life on planet

By Rob Waugh

PUBLISHED: 13:17 EST, 26 April 2012 | UPDATED: 13:22 EST, 26 April 2012

Nearly four million square miles of the surface of Mars are covered with glass - and the discovery could be evidence that the Red Planet once harboured life.

Martians, of course, are not peering at us through double-glazing - instead, the glass sand that covers Mars is evidence of lava interacting with ice or water, an ideal recipe for the creation of life.

One of the most popular theories of how life on Earth formed is that undersea volcanic vents created a chemical 'soup' where the first life forms evolved.

Martians, of course, are not peering at us through double-glazing - instead, the glass sand that covers Mars is evidence of lava interacting with ice or water, an ideal recipe for the creation of life

Volcanic glass on Mars: Martians, of course, are not peering at us through double-glazing - instead, the glass sand that covers Mars is evidence of lava interacting with ice or water, an ideal recipe for the creation of life

An image of the Viking 1 Martian lander which touched down on the Red Planet in 1976 and took soil samples and pictures of the surface

Looking in the wrong place? An image of the Viking 1 Martian lander which touched down on the Red Planet in 1976 and took soil samples and pictures of the surface


Mars is covered in volcanic glass - direct evidence that water and hot magma once interacted on the Red Planet.

'The glass is most likely volcanic glass produced during explosive eruptions, and potential sources include volcano-ice interactions in the northern lowlands,' say researchers Briony Horgan and James F. Bell of Arizona State University.

'The glass deposits also exhibit signs of weathering, indicating widespread interactions with liquid water.'

'These interactions that could create the perfect environments for microbial life,' says Astrobiology Magazine, which reported the research.

'Under the hyper-arid climatic conditions Mars has experienced over the past three billion years or more, the most likely source of this water is melting ice or snow,' says Horgan. 'These results suggest that explosive volcanism may be a major source of sediments on Mars, and that limited liquid water has been present at the surface of Mars even under long-term hyper-arid conditions.'

The glass on the surface could be a sign of water beneath the surface - or of long-preserved signatures of vanished life forms.

The enormous 48-mile long crater that is also one mile deep displays evidence at its edges of channels that could have been created by water displaced by the meteor impac

Many areas of Mars show evidence of past water: The enormous 48-mile long crater that is also one mile deep displays evidence at its edges of channels that could have been created by water displaced by the meteor impact

The European Space Agency's Mars Express was launched in 2003 and will map the Red Planet until 2014

The European Space Agency's Mars Express orbiter revealed that up to four million square miles of volcanic glass cover the surface of the Red Planet


Normal 0 false false false EN-GB X-NONE X-NONE /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0cm; mso-para-margin-right:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi; mso-fareast-language:EN-US;}

‘We definitely know searching for organisms in the northern lowlands is difficult,’ Horgan said. ‘I think the better place to go would be those source regions, the ice-magma interactions.’



Here's what other readers have said. Why not add your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards.

The comments below have not been moderated.

  • Newest
  • Oldest
  • Best rated
  • Worst rated

The lava was not created from volcanoes but from the massive heat generated from the collision between the planet mars and the earth 5 to 6 million years ago. evidence so far/ 1 Mars used to have vast oceans to carve out the landscpe. none now. 2/ Nasa agree whatever collided with the earth was the size of mars. 3/ Whatever collided with the earth was about the size of mars. 4/ Mars at some time in its past must have been a warm planet. 5/ the collision between mars and the earth knocked mars out into a colder orbit. 6/ This colder orbit killed off all the microscopic organisms, 7/ Mars rocks discovered on the earth are debri from this collision. 8/ Nasa has recently discovered clouds of the gas METHANE on the planet mars. For all not familiar with this gas it is only formed by rotting vegitation produced under water which means, a/ mars must have had vegitation in its past, or b/ it got deposited fro a planet that has ve

Report abuse

It's a god awful small affair To the girl with the mousy hair

Report abuse

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

Diposting oleh di

Tidak ada komentar:

Posting Komentar

Langganan: Posting Komentar (Atom)