Re: Is Mars habitable? Well, maybe. (NASA does youtube classes) - Answer is YES

On 11/2/2021 7:04 PM, a425couple wrote:
> from
> https://www.nasa.gov/feature/episode-2-we-asked-a-nasa-scientist-is-mars-habitable 
> 
> 
> Is Mars habitable? Well, maybe.
> 
> The question is, "Is it habitable and for whom?"
> 
> Mars is hundreds of degrees colder than Earth; it has a hundred times 
> less atmosphere and that atmosphere has hardly any oxygen. But there may 
> be other forms of life that could have evolved that aren't very much 
> like us but are very much like the early forms of life that evolved on 
> Earth.
> 
> Mars has evidence of being warmer in the past and of having stable 
> liquid surface water for potentially hundreds of thousands of years. So, 
> it's possible that in Mars' past there was a time where life could have 
> evolved in that particular environment.
> 
> We have been trying to definitively answer whether or not Mars is 
> habitable, and as of yet, the answer is still definitely maybe.
> 

Almost the entire northern hemisphere of Mars has soil
with up to 50% water/ice just meters or tens of meters
below the surface. In addition the soil is mineral
rich ideal for microbial growth, and as you go deeper
the protection from the solar radiation increases.
The near subsurface of almost half of Mars is ideal
conditions for life.

Is life there now? The answer is almost certainly yes.
I'll make the case for it below.

The new ideas of self organizing systems and emergence
would strongly suggest the universe is teeming with life.

And the /very first planet/ we looked closely for life
elsewhere, Mars, show strong evidence that microbial life
is there.

This conclusion is  backed up by the finding of the Mars
rovers which has caused the field of astrobiology to
explode like few other disciplines ever.

For instance in 2012 the astrobiology conference
had a few dozen posters presented mostly by starry-eyed
graduate students. But look at the last NASA astrobiology
conference in 2017, more papers than you can count
and by top flight universities. Almost all oriented
around life elsewhere and how to find it. That's not
a coincidence, the findings of the rovers have created
a race to be the first to prove life is there. A race
like few others in scientific history.

LOOK for yourself at this link....

2017 Abscicon Author list (A-K)
https://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/abscicon2017/authorindex.cfm


The field didn't explode like this after the rovers
by accident, they know what they found, microbial life
is almost certainly there just meters below the surface.
And literally the entire northern hemisphere of Mars
just underground is an ideal habitat for microbial life.

A few pics from Mars as teasers.

Can you explain this using only geological explanations?
It's /not/ possible. Geology tends to create highly
unique or non repetitive structure. Such massively
and identically similar structures like this is
the hallmark of life, not geology. And especially
microbial life

https://mars.nasa.gov/mer/gallery/all/2/m/709/2M189317905EFFAL00P2956M2M1.JPG

And Mars is far from dry, when the atmosphere thinned
the water merely went underground, and most of it
is still there. Not far beneath the surface.

For instance...

A Frozen Ocean the Size of the North Sea
https://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/lpsc2005/pdf/1741.pdf


And this /razor flat/ horizon can only be created by
...recent body of water or ice. This used to be a
shallow underground body of water/ice that dried up
and was later exposed by erosion, it's the bottom
of a shallow underground sea.

http://areo.info/mer/opportunity/405/tn/1P164131978EFF5000P2663L5M1_L4L5L5L5L6.jpg.html


And this exposed sea floor is coated from horizon
to horizon by the Martian spheres, all coming
in three /uniform/ sizes. Countless billions
of them like these.

http://areo.info/mer/opportunity/530/tn/1P175230555EFF5702P2456L5M1_L4L5L5L5L6.jpg.html

http://areo.info/mer/opportunity/123/tn/1P139098299EFF2809P2267L5M1_L2L5L5L6L6.jpg.html

https://mars.nasa.gov/mer/gallery/all/opportunity_m014.html

https://mars.nasa.gov/mer/gallery/all/1/m/105/1M137503553EFF2208P2956M2M1.HTML



You can see their process of growth due to
repeated soaking clearly in the sphere in
the...lower left...of this pic, in
the sphere that has a half shell.

https://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/mer/gallery/all/1/m/106/1M137593860EFF2208P2956M2M1.JPG



This stunning pic may show their ongoing
formation. This is a pic of a patch of soft
clay like sphere rich soil.

http://areo.info/mer/opportunity/012/tn/1P129250922EFF0224P2374L5M1_L4L5L5L5L6.jpg.html

Yes, clay on the surface of Mars.


PHY.ORG
Martian 'blueberries' could be clues to presence of life

Previous theories suggested these concretions were formed
by simple chemical reactions without the help of life.
However, new UWA research shows clear evidence that microbes
were essential in their formation.

This raises the possibility that Martian "blueberries" may
not only reveal that water was present on Mars - but life too.

UWA scientists David Wacey and Matt Kilburn used
high-resolution NanoSIMS technology at the University's
Centre for Microscopy, Characterisation and Analysis to
show clear relationships in the Utah concretions between
microbe-like forms and concentrations of biological
elements such as carbon and nitrogen.

Their findings - in collaboration with scientists from
the University of Nebraska - feature on the front cover
  of the August issue of the journal Geology.

University of Nebraska Assistant Professor Karrie Weber
said UWA's CMCA facility - which is used to study
everything from early life on Earth to cancer drugs,
  plant biology, rocks and soils, and nanotechnology
- was chosen because of its demonstrated success in
identifying microbial fossils.

Read more at: 
https://phys.org/news/2012-09-martian-blueberries-clues-presence-life.html#jCp





Journal of Astrobiology and Space Science Reviews,
Vol 1, 40-81, 2019

JournalofAstrobiology.com/EvidenceofLifeonMars.html



Evidence of Life on Mars?

1. Overview: The Evidence

Presented here is a body of evidence and observations which
do not prove but supports the hypothesis Mars was, and is, a
living planet hosting prokaryotes, lichens, and fungi.
This evidence includes:

https://www.astro.umd.edu/~hamilton/teaching/HONR289Vspring19/Handouts/LifeOnMars.pdf








> Learn more about the NASA’s search for life beyond Earth: 
> https://www.nasa.gov/astrobiology
> 
> Full Episode List
> 
> Latest Episodes
> 
> Episode 12 – We Asked a NASA Technologist: How Did Perseverance Pick Its 
> Landing Spot?
> 
> Episode 11 — We Asked a NASA Scientist: What if an Asteroid Were Going 
> to Hit Earth?
> 
> Episode 10 – We Asked a NASA Scientist: Did Mars Ever Look Like Earth?
> 
> Episode 9 – We Asked a NASA Scientist: What are Lagrange Points?
> 
> Episode 8 – We Asked a NASA Scientist: What are the Trojan Asteroids?
> 
> Episode 7 – We Asked a NASA Technologist: Is There Oxygen on Mars?
> 
> Episode 6 – We Asked a NASA Scientist: Does NASA Know About All the 
> Asteroids?
> 
> Episode 5 – We Asked a NASA Scientist: Do Aliens Exist?
> 
> Episode 4 – We Asked a NASA Technologist: Is There Weather on Mars?
> 
> Episode 3 – We Asked a NASA Scientist: Will an Asteroid Ever Hit Earth?
> 
> Episode 2 – We Asked a NASA Scientist: Is Mars Habitable?
> 
> Episode 1 – We Asked a NASA Scientist: Could Microbes Survive a Trip to 
> Mars?
> 
> For example, episode 10, lasts 1:14
> Episode 10 – We Asked a NASA Scientist – Did Mars Ever Look Like Earth?
> Did Mars ever look like Earth? Yes, we think it did! Ancient Mars may 
> have been wetter and warmer — similar to Earth. What happened? 
> Scientists like NASA’s Dr. Becky McCauley Rench are trying to find out.
> 
> When the solar system settled into its current layout over four billion 
> years ago, Mars and Earth formed from the same materials and looked very 
> similar. Both are terrestrial planets, with a central core, a rocky 
> mantle, and a solid crust. Early on, we know that Mars once had lakes, 
> streams, and perhaps even a northern ocean.
> 
> The two worlds diverged, and we have two very different planets today. 
> Despite the fact that Mars may once have been warm and wet, it is now a 
> cold, dry place. As the Earth progressed with plate tectonics and the 
> development of life, Mars' geologic activity subsided, lost water, and 
> it became a much drier planet.
> 
> This shared history is part of why it's so fascinating to study the Red 
> Planet. Our Mars exploration efforts are helping us understand more 
> about Mars' past and future, as well as understanding Earth and 
> planetary evolution both in our solar system and beyond.
> 
> So, did Mars ever look like Earth? Well, yes it did. A very, very long 
> time ago.
> 
> Learn more about NASA’s Martian exploration efforts: 
> https://www.nasa.gov/mars