Now they had found their proxy, the team needed to simulate the conditions of Mars. "This made them a good option to use here, and I think Robert Falcon Scott would be pleased that, over a century later, a sample from his expedition would still be breaking new ground." "These mats are well-preserved and, despite their age, still show strong biosignatures." "I've been working with microbial mats collected during the Discovery expedition, led by the polar explorer Robert Falcon Scott in the early 1900s," she says. These are collections of bacteria and other microbes that created some of the oldest evidence of life on Earth, so it's not unreasonable to assume that life on Mars might have taken a similar path.Īs part of her research, Louisa has been working with samples of microbial mats from the Natural History Museum's collection. If life existed on Mars, it's thought that it might have been in the form of microbial mats. To simulate any potential Martian biosignatures, the team faced two challenges: to find a proxy for Martian life, and to simulate the conditions on the planet. In collaboration with the students, the team decided to simulate what the signs of ancient life might look like on the red planet by making use of the Natural History Museum's collections. "Working in infrared, the issue is that a lot of the core characteristics of gypsum have absorption features which obscure organic peaks in the spectrum. "While gypsum might be good at preserving organics, it might also make them harder to find," Connor explains. On Earth, this mineral is found in dry lakes, and it has been suggested that on Mars the mineral might have preserved the organic molecules of any life that could have lived in any liquid water. The team were particularly interested in the effect gypsum might have on these signs. To account for this, researchers wanted to know what tell-tale signs are left behind as biosignatures break down. High levels of radiation, temperature extremes and Mars' weather might have damaged or obscured the markers making them hard to detect. But identifying these signs could prove tricky. It is hoped that if it ever existed, Martian life left some traces behind in the form of physical or chemical markers known as biosignatures. While a human would not survive on Mars' surface, there are many microbes on Earth that could find its carbon dioxide rich, dry atmosphere very hospitable. Many of these missions have tried to answer one big question-has there ever been life on Mars? Since the 1990s, six rovers have successfully touched down on the surface of Mars to learn more about our neighboring planet. The findings of the study were published in the journal Research Notes of the AAS. "Getting kids involved in science is really important, and so we hope this will inspire other students too." Louisa Preston, a scientific associate at the Natural History Museum and co-author, adds, "It's really brilliant for these young women to already have a paper out with their name on to celebrate their work." I know a lot of them want to pursue a science career, so we really hope this will help them in their futures."ĭr. "We know that science suffers from a lack of diversity, so being able to work with these young women was a pleasure. student who led the study, says, "We wanted to get the students involved in as many aspects as possible with this research, and they were really engaged throughout." This allowed the researchers to examine any changes that the cold, dry atmosphere caused to the signs of life.Ĭonnor Ballard, a Ph.D. Pupils from the all-girls school, whose alumni include Dame Helen Mirren, prepared samples of a microbial mat that were flown to the edge of space in a balloon to mimic the conditions on Mars. Students from St Bernard's Convent High School in Westcliff-On-Sea, Essex, assisted scientists from the Natural History Museum and University College London in an experiment to see what evidence any potential ancient life may have left on the red planet. A group of budding young researchers has helped to demonstrate how evidence of life on Mars could be found.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |