Spring Break
UV rays may shed light on Mars life
Upcoming Mars missions will use new method of examining soil for organic compounds
Carly Dougher
Issue date: 7/2/08 Section: News
A group of scientists from the United States and the United Kingdom have recently refined an optical method to determine if organic materials can be found in the soils of Mars.
The refined methodology could be used as early as 2009 on a NASA Mars rover, but it is more likely to be implemented on the European Space Agency's ExoMars mission, which will take place in 2013. The goal of both missions will be to look at past and present evidence of life on Mars to be used in further investigation of the planet's habitability.
Dr. Martin Fisk, a professor of marine geology at Oregon State University and co-author of the study published in the American Geophysical Union's journal, Geophysical Research Letters, surmises that if organic matter is found on Mars, then the possibility of life exists.
"Organic matter is the basis of life, and the presence of organic matter on Mars would be a very interesting development," Fisk said. "If there is no organic matter on the surface of Mars, presumably there can't be any life there."
The basic principle behind the science relies on the fluorescence of organic material excited by light at the 375 nanometer wavelength, otherwise known as ultraviolet light. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAHs, are some of the more common organic molecules in the universe and fall by the ton on planets such as Mars, Venus and even Earth in the form of tiny particles.
When the 1976 Viking probe to Mars did not detect any organic material or PAHs down to the parts-per-million level, scientists were led to believe that the surface was sterilized by gamma rays and UV light.
Dr. Michael Storrie-Lombardi, lead author and director of the Kinohi Institute in Pasadena, Calif., hypothesizes alongside researchers from University College London that organic material is present in Martian soil, but at a depth of one to two meters below the surface.
"Particles fall in from space, hit the surface, and then by wind activity and storms blowing around and covering them up, the particles could be buried down about a meter below the surface and they would survive for long periods of time," Storrie-Lombardi said.
The refined methodology could be used as early as 2009 on a NASA Mars rover, but it is more likely to be implemented on the European Space Agency's ExoMars mission, which will take place in 2013. The goal of both missions will be to look at past and present evidence of life on Mars to be used in further investigation of the planet's habitability.
Dr. Martin Fisk, a professor of marine geology at Oregon State University and co-author of the study published in the American Geophysical Union's journal, Geophysical Research Letters, surmises that if organic matter is found on Mars, then the possibility of life exists.
"Organic matter is the basis of life, and the presence of organic matter on Mars would be a very interesting development," Fisk said. "If there is no organic matter on the surface of Mars, presumably there can't be any life there."
The basic principle behind the science relies on the fluorescence of organic material excited by light at the 375 nanometer wavelength, otherwise known as ultraviolet light. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAHs, are some of the more common organic molecules in the universe and fall by the ton on planets such as Mars, Venus and even Earth in the form of tiny particles.
When the 1976 Viking probe to Mars did not detect any organic material or PAHs down to the parts-per-million level, scientists were led to believe that the surface was sterilized by gamma rays and UV light.
Dr. Michael Storrie-Lombardi, lead author and director of the Kinohi Institute in Pasadena, Calif., hypothesizes alongside researchers from University College London that organic material is present in Martian soil, but at a depth of one to two meters below the surface.
"Particles fall in from space, hit the surface, and then by wind activity and storms blowing around and covering them up, the particles could be buried down about a meter below the surface and they would survive for long periods of time," Storrie-Lombardi said.
Note: writers will not reply to comments.
Be the first to comment on this story
Comments by registered users are approved by default.