Science News Reader Supplement HERE & NOW Martian Meteorite Vicki M. Harder

The announcement on August 6, 1996 by NASA at a news conference that a research team of scientists at the Johnson Space Center and at Stanford University found the first organic molecules thought to be of Martian origin in a Martian meteorite and the subsequent reporting of the event and additonal findings by Science News provides a unique opportunity to view the scientific method at work. The initial announcement of the discovery can be found in the Science News Reader article Meteorite Hints at Early Life on Mars. As you read the article note what data was collected to support the hypothesis that primitive life existed on Mars 3.6 billion years ago and why scientists believe Mars may have supported some form of life.

SEM images of Martian fossils, NASA At the following link Stanford scientists demonstrate laser mass spectrometry, the technique used to determine the origin of the meteorite. At this link is a collection of photographs taken of the potential life forms.

Of course a visit to the Martian planet is a sure way to test the hypothesis of life from Mars but where would one begin to look, and more importantly, when is the next Mars mission? The articleMapping the Martian home of life evidence describes how a scientist pinpointed two possible sites in which to look out of a potential 42,283. NASA launched the Mars Pathfinder in early December which is planned to reach Mars July 4, 1997. Will this mission go to either one of the two potential locations? When is earliest arrival date of a Martian lander at one of the two potential locations? In the article"Interplanetary Odyssey: Can a rock journeying from Mars to Earth carry life? further evidence is provided to support the hypothesis that the meteorite originated from Mars. An interesting aspect in this article is how computer simulations were used to support the hypothesis. An interesting exercise would be to determine how many fragments from Mercury and Venus could have reached Earth from the beginning of time. How would plate tectonics and the distribution of land versus water affect your calculations?

Scientists are certain the Antarctica meteorite is from Mars for several reasons: Most Martian meteorites are 1.3 billion years old or less, much younger than meteorites from asteroids which are 4.5 billion years old. Martian meteorites have higher contents of volatiles (gases) than igneous meteorites. The trapped gases within the meteorite match those that Viking measured in the Martian atomsphere. Not all scientists are convinced that the data supports the hypothesis that the meteroite actually contain primitive life forms as discussed in the Science News Reader article entitled Searching for Life in a Martian Meteorite: A seeswa of resultsHow well do you think they presented their case? Do you feel that the co-authors of the initial meteorite study adequately answered the questions raised by the new report?

Reference and Additional Links

Mars Fact Sheet The Martian Chronicle A weekly newsletter on Mars exploration from NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab. Virtual Mars Atlas Spacecraft Stanford University International Mars Program Evidence of Primitive Life From Mars Mars and Meteorites