Big News From Mars? Rover Scientists Mum For Now

Scientists working on NASA's six-wheeled rover on Mars have a problem. But it's a good problem. They have some exciting new results from one of the rover's instruments. On the one hand, they'd like to tell everybody what they found, but on the other, they have to wait because they want to make sure their results are not just some fluke or error in their instrument.

www.npr.org...

Life?

reply to post by Ginga


I would love to think it is. However, without being too negative, nearly every time an "exciting announcement" is due, it turns out to be a damp squib. We start thinking "life" and they get excited because it is the same soil as in Texas or something similar!

reply to post by Ginga


Thanks for the heads up.

Can't wait for the announcement on this one.

It may be something great to a scientist or hard core follower, but it's never something new and exciting to the average person. Other posters are right, this'll turn out to be another dud.

reply to post by Ginga


That would be so cool, unforunately it is probably something that excites the scientists and leaves us scratching our heads thinking WTF why is that important ? Oh well back to sharpening my chisels, they are very sexy chisels.

Explanation: S&F!

DONT FORGET .. that if they have found life on mars ... they don't deserve the PRIME credit as it was found on mars decades ago during the Viking expedition!

Personal Disclosure: But it would be great to get a 2nd opinion and this may be it!

My guess: As the Rover was getting ready to pay the bill for lunch, it realised that it had a coupon in its pocket for $0.50 off exactly what it ordered! Things are looking up!

It's probably something that only enthusiasts and scientists will find exciting, I doubt it's life, they would probably keep quite until they had a big announcement.

reply to post by OmegaLogos

DONT FORGET .. that if they have found life on mars ... they don't deserve the PRIME credit as it was found on mars decades ago during the Viking expedition!

Don't forget, the Viking data was inconclusive. The SAM has detected organic molecules. This suggests that the ingredients for life are present on Mars. Unfortunately, organic molecules are also present in comets and carbonaceous chondrite meteorites, so it doesn't really prove anything, one way or the other.

Methane in the atmosphere would be my guess. Personally a little bit of wee comes out every time I hear JPL has an update for us...



The instrument that the results are from.

reply to post by seudonymous


Didn't they already announce that?

the rover has found and earth like planet 2 zillion light years away and its orbiting its star in the habitable zone is my guess.

well isn't that always the "big" news they have now?

//// ....... can't sleep , too excited

but probably just this ...

Probably just some evidence of ancient river channel sediment or some other let down. We have already established Mars had seas and rivers, so it will be a let down.

IF it's microbes, then Viking and those that have for decades fought to inform the world of what was found back then (and obscured under the 'inconclusive' umbrella') by Viking instruments will be totally vindicated.

The rover isn't rigged with the correct equipment to find life.

IRM

How annoying......what is the purpose of telling the world they have made a discovery "worthy of the history books".....then announce they can't say what it is

Why not just wait until the discovery is confirmed and then announce it?

reply to post by InfaRedMan


Interesting, need to look into that more. Although, thinking about it, i think you may be right. The Rover is more equipped for reading geological data isn't it?

I don't beleive anything until it's on MSM.

Originally posted by Argyll
How annoying......what is the purpose of telling the world they have made a discovery "worthy of the history books".....then announce they can't say what it is

Why not just wait until the discovery is confirmed and then announce it?

Perhaps they were taking bets on how long it would take for a thread to appear on ATS about a potential 'discovery'...some may even be well known members.

I think they may have dug up some object that has an intelligence behind it(a sentient being/civilization)... well whatever is i hope it snot a let down.

I don't have my hopes up, i assured myself that we will not find life on another planet in my life time lol

Maybe in couple of hundred years... when we develop faster travel and could cover more grounds.