A compact “life detector” has been built for future missions to Mars. Called the Mars Organic Analyzer, the briefcase-sized device reportedly has 1,000 times greater sensitivity than the 1976 Viking probes, which didn’t detect organic molecules.
June 17th, 2004
Op/Ed: Space Is Our Home, not a Program Betterhumans
When I walk with my head held high, I can see great distances and imagine great things. When I walk with eyes cast down, I see only my feet and the sidewalk below them. When it comes to America’s vision for space, most of the commentary on President Bush’s recently announced initiative is sadly sidewalk-bound. For decades the space debate has focused too much on exploration. The exploration of space is valuable in and of itself, but the most important reason for exploring space
February 12th, 2003
Methane Might Mark Martian Life Betterhumans
Like Earth organisms, Martian organisms would pass gas. So why not use this as a marker for life on the Red Planet? Scientists from George Mason University and the California Institute of Technology suggest we do just that. In a paper in Geophysical Research Letters, the scientists say that bacteria that evolved early in Martian history and then moved underground could be producing detectable methane.