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In this Discussion
- bealema August 2011
- John_Brady August 2011
- Stephen August 2011
POSSIBLE LIQUID WATER ON MARS!!!!
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I read on the astronomy now website yesterday they have found what looks like streams of liquid water in the warmest regions on mars! They are not 100% sure though.... They think the water is pretty salty so it lowers the freezing temperature of the water. Potential for life past or present?? Either way its very exciting! Hopefully further examination proves this!
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Hi Stephen, yes this is major news !! I was on twitter the other day eagerly awaiting the Nasa news announcement.
I was really suprised at first as I thought the wet stuff couldn't exist as a liquid as the low atmospheric pressures on Mars causes water to go straight from ice into gas in a process called sublimation. But there must be special places on the red planet where it's ok for water to flow...but if it's salty then that's going to alter things.
A big mystery is the methane question. Huge plumes of methane are detected coming from Mars, and it changes through the seasons. Now this gas is only produced by two things, geological activity and life. As far as scientists know Mars is geologically dead, there's no erupting volcanoes or Earth quakes...sorry Mars quakes happening. So that only leaves the other thing, life.
Mars has a very thin atmosphere and no magnetic field so it can't fight off deadly radiation coming from the Sun. But life it extremely tough and any Martian alien critters could live underground. What do they say? There's more life living under our feet on planet Earth than on the surface.
What does anyone else think on this, is Martian life inevitable? -
Its all bizarre as it all seems to try and cancel eachother out ... like .. you say life is the only remaining reason for methane ... but then the radiation .. would cancel that out ... its all really frustrating ... i hope they find life its all exciting :) if there is life there i think it will be under the surface and i think it will be similar to our fossilised creatures like i think there will be weird insect creatures :) ............. speaking of mars ... i saw it for the first time other night .,.. well morning at like 3.40 .... but its soo small it looked like a star .... through my telescope ... it was red and like the light around it was disfigured ... im sure it was mars as i have stellerium and located it from that .... but it is meant to be tiny for now isnt it ? .... until opposition it will be a good size ? :)
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Hi Bealema, yes radiation is really bad news for life even if everything else on the planet was just fine. If there was water under the surface, or in caves on Mars then life might exist away from the Sun's harmful radiation. It's all pretty exciting.
Mars is only about half the size of Earth, that's why it has had trouble holding onto its atmosphere and magnetic field. So even at opposition it still can be on the small side, but with a half decent scope its ice cap can be seen as well as dark markings on the surface. But even just with the unaided eye, Mars can look really spectacular glowing red in the night sky. -
SKYWATCHER SKYHAWK-1145P TELESCOPE
114mm (4.5") f/500 Parabolic Newtonian Reflector
Thats my scope ... soo do you think i will be able to see the ice caps and markings when it reaches opposition ? :) ...i got this off my brother for 80 pound so i cant complain :) .. ive also got a motor on it but it doesnt seem to work ... but ive took it off and put it on and it doesnt track the stars ... :/ .. any ideas ? Ill ask ym bro if he can do it .. as he said he had it working .. :) -
You should try it, clear transparant skies will make a difference and it takes practice. First you'll probably see just a very small red disk with no details at all, but given enough patience and a steady sky you might (or might not) see darker features seeming to spring into view with enough time at the eyepiece, or maybe even the northern ice cap.
...Providing large dust storms are not obscuring everything at the time of opposition.
Opposition means the time it's at its very opposite point to the Sun, so it's at its brightest and maximum angular size. Plenty of great observing can be made either side of opposition. -
ok :) yess because when i look at Jupiter .. after few mins i can see the red columns abit more .. like not alot of detail but you can see it but it takes a lot of focus ... :) its too bright thats why :)
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My article on liquid water on Mars... http://astronomycentral.co.uk/possible-signs-of-liquid-water-on-mars
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nice article! its really exciting to think there could be flowing water there! now we just have to wait and find out if it really is water. hope we dont have to wait to long. imagine vikings tests for life all those years ago was infact positive.....
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just out of interest, has anybody read the book 'the case for mars' by DR robert zubrin? thinking of buying it, looks interesting.
