Lakeside on Mars
December 19, 2013
The Mars Science Laboratory, nicknamed Curiosity, has made a number of remarkable discoveries since it landed on Mars in the summer of 2012. The most recent feather in the rover’s cap is the discovery of a primordial lake within Gale Crater, the landing site of the small vehicle. Unlike previous evidence of liquid water on the planet, this new finding, in an area called Yellowknife Bay, hints of water similar to the liquid fresh water found on Earth. The new discovery paints the surface of Mars as a much more inviting environment for life as we know it to form. The water in the lake appears to have been both long standing and neither too acidic or alkaline for life as we know it.
The lake seems to have been relatively large and may have remained on the planet for thousands of years, if not more. Furthermore, the water seems to have been present around 3.5 billion years ago, about the same time scientists think life began on Earth. The discovery of the lake also reinforces the findings that what look to be stream beds, channels, deltas, and other landforms on the planet were created by water and are exactly what they appear to be.
The most thrilling discovery to come from the exploration of the planet would surely be the discovery of life, whether the life existed in the past or is currently still thriving. Although the planet has since dried out and the atmosphere nearly vanished, some scientists believe the planet could still harbor life under the planet’s surface. Further exploration is needed to confirm this hope. There has even been talk for many years of the possibility that life on Earth was carried here by meteorites that originated on the Martian surface. Many meteorites came from Mars. Did they they carry some of the building blocks for life to Earth? Did they actually carried life itself as tiny passengers?
Additional World Book articles:
- Probing the Planets (a special report)
- The Search for Water on Mars (a special report)
- Space exploration 2011 (a Back in Time article)
- Space exploration 2012 (a Back in Time article)