So NASA 'found' water on Mars.
It means different things to different people, but for many of the scientists involved, it's not really 'news', I imagine - more a confirmation of generally accepted reality.
The only real change in more populist perception is the move from bounteous surface water then (approx. 500,000 years ago) to seasonal trickles of water now.
Still, it raises the collective profile, and creates a buzz in the wake of the Pluto flyby, keeping the realm of space in the public eye, and hopefully generating further funding for exploration.
I learned a new technical term , as well - Recurring Slope Linae - RSL - lines which indicate (in this case) water flow on Martian slopes.
How will this news affect future Mars exploration ?
It means that NASA will be honouring the 'Outer Space Treaty' of 1967, by choosing exploration sites well away from all evidence of water, and landers being free of contaminants as far as possible - after all, we don't want to follow the historic example of human colonists who wiped out native species by inadvertently introducing disease .
For some, the announcement merely means that yes, we should colonise Mars .
However, this conjures images of a wild frontier, with pioneering types staking claims to land in the ' Gold Rush of 2020 '.
Except there may not be gold as such.
There is certainly a wealth of citrine, olivine and feldspar.
It may be the case that claims have already been lodged with some Intergalactic Mining Body.
Which may lead to unpleasant scenes on Mars.
With angry locals staging sitdown protests, and suchlike.
This is also an extrapolation too far - that there are 'locals'.
Since H.G.Wells wrote 'The War Of The Worlds' in 1897, we've seen them (Martians) as undesirable interlopers, invaders intent on usurping our world, little green men with a penchant for invasion and genocide.
The initial invasion was almost parochial, with the Martians invading Woking, Surrey, in England.
Personally, I think it was evocative of the fears inherent as a new century approached - perhaps even a psychic window into the looming dark clouds of war - World War One was only a few years away.
Of course, the Hollywood interpretation is more global.
The latest remake of the 'War Of The Worlds' movie involves Mr Tom Cruise (who knows a few things about invading aliens).
The amount of sci-fi centred on encounters with Mars is vast, the most recent entry being 'The Martian', in which Matt Damon grows potatoes on the red planet.
It has fared well, considering the monumental thumbs down which greeted the recent John Carter movie. Eleven books of source material and three screenplay writers - yes, it's a mess.
Even the mythical Santa Claus had a battle with joyless martians, a film that lives forever in the minds of those unfortunate enough to see it...
Anyway, enough of the glib, potted reviews -
In terms of invading aliens , to coin a phrase - the shoe is on the other foot , and we are now the invaders.
We must tread carefully (literally).
In conclusion, we have 'Recurring Slope Lineae' in abundance on Mars - but we also see RSL on Ceres.
Many of its craters exhibit RSL , particularly on sunlight facing slopes
My question is this;
if the dark RSL on Mars are flowing water, what then, are the light - coloured streaks on Ceres' crater walls ?
The recent image below shows an odd hexagon-shaped crater, and mystery light - coloured streaks on the upper-left walls...click for larger view.
I'm not even going to wonder how we have a hexagonal crater - instead, I offer a link to brand new and wonderful images of Ceres , and I say thanks to the tireless efforts of E Lakdawalla, and all at The Planetary Society.
It means different things to different people, but for many of the scientists involved, it's not really 'news', I imagine - more a confirmation of generally accepted reality.
The only real change in more populist perception is the move from bounteous surface water then (approx. 500,000 years ago) to seasonal trickles of water now.
Still, it raises the collective profile, and creates a buzz in the wake of the Pluto flyby, keeping the realm of space in the public eye, and hopefully generating further funding for exploration.
I learned a new technical term , as well - Recurring Slope Linae - RSL - lines which indicate (in this case) water flow on Martian slopes.
How will this news affect future Mars exploration ?
It means that NASA will be honouring the 'Outer Space Treaty' of 1967, by choosing exploration sites well away from all evidence of water, and landers being free of contaminants as far as possible - after all, we don't want to follow the historic example of human colonists who wiped out native species by inadvertently introducing disease .
For some, the announcement merely means that yes, we should colonise Mars .
However, this conjures images of a wild frontier, with pioneering types staking claims to land in the ' Gold Rush of 2020 '.
Except there may not be gold as such.
There is certainly a wealth of citrine, olivine and feldspar.
It may be the case that claims have already been lodged with some Intergalactic Mining Body.
Which may lead to unpleasant scenes on Mars.
With angry locals staging sitdown protests, and suchlike.
This is also an extrapolation too far - that there are 'locals'.
Since H.G.Wells wrote 'The War Of The Worlds' in 1897, we've seen them (Martians) as undesirable interlopers, invaders intent on usurping our world, little green men with a penchant for invasion and genocide.
The initial invasion was almost parochial, with the Martians invading Woking, Surrey, in England.
Personally, I think it was evocative of the fears inherent as a new century approached - perhaps even a psychic window into the looming dark clouds of war - World War One was only a few years away.
Of course, the Hollywood interpretation is more global.
The latest remake of the 'War Of The Worlds' movie involves Mr Tom Cruise (who knows a few things about invading aliens).
The amount of sci-fi centred on encounters with Mars is vast, the most recent entry being 'The Martian', in which Matt Damon grows potatoes on the red planet.
It has fared well, considering the monumental thumbs down which greeted the recent John Carter movie. Eleven books of source material and three screenplay writers - yes, it's a mess.
Even the mythical Santa Claus had a battle with joyless martians, a film that lives forever in the minds of those unfortunate enough to see it...
Anyway, enough of the glib, potted reviews -
In terms of invading aliens , to coin a phrase - the shoe is on the other foot , and we are now the invaders.
We must tread carefully (literally).
In conclusion, we have 'Recurring Slope Lineae' in abundance on Mars - but we also see RSL on Ceres.
Many of its craters exhibit RSL , particularly on sunlight facing slopes
My question is this;
if the dark RSL on Mars are flowing water, what then, are the light - coloured streaks on Ceres' crater walls ?
The recent image below shows an odd hexagon-shaped crater, and mystery light - coloured streaks on the upper-left walls...click for larger view.
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| Hexagonal (!) crater on Ceres |
I'm not even going to wonder how we have a hexagonal crater - instead, I offer a link to brand new and wonderful images of Ceres , and I say thanks to the tireless efforts of E Lakdawalla, and all at The Planetary Society.
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