NASA’s Curiosity rover detects organic compounds on Mars

Open Minds UFO News and Investigations ^ | 12-4-12 | Jason McClellan

[smokingfrog]

On Tuesday, November 20, Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity chief scientist John Grotzinger told NPR that an upcoming announcement about data from a recently collected soil sample by Curiosity’s Sample Analysis at Mars, or SAM, instrument would be “one for the history books.” This comment fueled speculation about the possible discovery of evidence indicating past or present life on Mars.

Curiosity rover on December 3 during a press conference at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco, California. Explaining the announcement, Space.com describes that Curiosity “found evidence of chlorine, sulfur, and water in Mars dirt studied by its onboard laboratory, as well as organic compounds (chemicals containing carbon) inside its Sample Analysis at Mars instrument.”

[GeronL]

thank you very much much for that correction

[thepoodlebites]

organic compounds (chemicals containing carbon)
lol, “organic compounds” vs “chemicals containing carbon”...maybe they mean the same thing to chemists, but to a layman one sounds like “life” and the other like “yeah whatever”.

They may find complex hydro-carbons and even amino acids, but it’s a long, long, googleplex long way to the self-replicating RNA molecule. I don’t think they will find that, but if they do, then that would be news. We live on an exceptionally rare planet.

[biggerten]

Spirit conked out in 2010, Opportunity is still working.

[smokingfrog]

NASA declared Spirit dead in May 2011, identifying hypothermia as the likely cause. But Opportunity remains an active and alert planetary explorer.

[BenLurkin]

Huh.

[DoughtyOne]

;^)

[BrandtMichaels]

I’m not surprised in the least. If the hydroplate theory [replaces plate tectonics] is true then one should expect water, organic compounds and possibly even fossils from Earth throughout the planets and moons in our solar system. See my links page re: the hydroplate theory.