New organic molecules on Mars: NASA discovery

curiousity Strikes Again: The NASA Rover That Has Been Operating Unobtrusively on Mars Since 2011 New organic molecules found on the surface of the red planet. This means that there are effects Vita? Let’s find out.

What Curiosity discovered

The rover has found previously unknown organic molecules on the surface of Mars: Ammonia and benzoic acid. The latter is found in particular on Earth in many plants and berries, but for the first time it was also found on the Red Planet.

However, Curiosity did not find amino acids, a kind of “building block” on which life is based. This discovery does not prove the existence of life on Mars, Because organic molecules can be formed through other processes. life as well waterIt’s still a mirage on the red planet.

However, Curiosity has found that it is possible to trace carbon-based molecules with one innovative technology.

How did the discovery of organic molecules happen?

Usually curiosity is used electric drill To drill into the surface of Mars and extract elements and particles from the deeper part. However, the exercise stopped working in 2016: but NASA scientists did not stop at this hurdle, deciding to act differently. Then curiosity started collecting sand, particularly from Bagnold Dunes.

Led by scientists on Earth, the probe stuffed some of that sand into its onboard chemical lab, incorporating it into its structure. He had only nine tubes of sealing solvent, and thus could only run nine samples. Therefore, he could not afford mistakes in such a precious asset.

We did not expect to find anything interesting, because it is an area that has been exposed for thousands of years to cosmic elements, in particular ionizing radiation. Rather, an interesting find.

The future of discovery

This discovery and the new technology used Laying the foundations for Curiosity’s future work On the specimens on Earth, particularly when wet chemistry experiments begin after the Rover’s visit to Gale Crater.

And of course this will also help the new Perseverance rover, which has just discovered what it looks like to go awayand rover vehicles of the European Space Agency and Russia’s Roscosmos, which will soon arrive on the Red Planet.