\n
By Jill Serjeant<\/p>\n
June 26, 2008 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n
<\/p>\n
"Flabbergasted" NASA scientists said on Thursday that Martian soil
\nappeared to contain the requirements to support life, although more
\nwork would be needed to prove it.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Scientists working on the Phoenix Mars Lander mission, which has
\nalready found ice on the planet, said preliminary analysis by the
\nlander’s instruments on a sample of soil scooped up by the spacecraft’s
\nrobotic arm had shown it to be much more alkaline than expected.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
"We basically have found what appears to be the requirements, the
\nnutrients, to support life whether past present or future," Sam
\nKounaves, the lead investigator for the wet chemistry laboratory on
\nPhoenix, told journalists. "It is the type of soil you would probably
\nhave in your back yard, you know, alkaline. You might be able to grow
\nasparagus in it really well. … It is very exciting for us."<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The 1 cubic meter (35 cubic feet) of soil was taken from about 1
\ninch below the surface of Mars and had a pH, or alkaline, level of 8 or
\n9. "We were all flabbergasted at the data we got back," Kounaves said.
\nPressed on whether there was still any doubt that life existed on Mars
\nin some form, Kounaves said the results were "very preliminary" and
\nmore analysis was needed. But he added: "There is nothing about the
\nsoil that would preclude life. In fact, it seems very friendly …
\nthere is nothing about it that is toxic."<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The $420 million Phoenix lander touched down in the north pole
\nregion of Mars on May 25 after a 10-month journey from Earth. It is the
\nlatest NASA bid to determine whether water — a crucial ingredient for
\nlife — ever flowed on the planet and whether life, even in the form of
\nmere microbes, exists or ever existed there.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Scientists said last week they had definitive proof that ice was on
\nthe planet after eight dice-sized chunks were seen melting away in a
\nseries of photographs. Analysis in the past 24 hours of soil placed in
\nthe spacecraft’s wet chemistry laboratory showed it to be less acidic
\nthan many scientists expected. It also contained traces of magnesium,
\nsodium, potassium and other elements, they said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
When told the pH levels, one colleague "jumped up and down as if he
\nhad the winning lottery ticket," mission soil analysis specialist
\nMichael Hecht told a telephone news conference.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
"It is a huge step forward," Hecht said, adding the "wet chemistry"
\ntechnique, which involves mixing Martian soil with water brought from
\nEarth, was aimed at discovering what native Martian microbes might be
\nable to live, survive and grow in the soil. The mission scientists said
\nlevels of salt were reasonable and the calcium levels appeared to be
\nlow but they warned that the composition of the soil could change at
\ndeeper levels below the surface.<\/p>\n
They also would not be drawn on what form of life the Martian soil might have supported.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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