Your Excellency Curiosity Rover perforated samples from Gale Crater, the location of an ancient lake on Mars. Using these samples, scientists were able, for the first time, to measure the total amount of organic carbon in the rocks of Mars, according to NASA announcement (opens in a new tab). Organic carbon, which is carbon attached to a hydrogen atom, is a prerequisite for the organic molecules created and used by all known life forms. However, organic carbon can also come from non-living sources, such as meteorites and volcanic eruptions. While previous studies have detected smaller amounts of organic carbon in samples of Mars rocks, new measurements provide information on the total amount of carbon in organic compounds. “Total organic carbon is one of the many measurements [or indices] “They help us understand how much material is available as raw material for prebiotic chemistry and possibly biology,” said Jennifer Stern, lead author of the study and a space scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. at least 200 to 273 parts per million of organic carbon. “This is comparable or even greater than the amount found in rocks in places with very low life on Earth, such as parts of the Atacama Desert in South America, and more than what has been detected in Mars meteorites.” Today, Mars is not a suitable environment for life, but there is evidence to suggest that the Red Planet was more Earth-as billions of years ago, with a thicker atmosphere and liquid water on its surface – basic ingredients for life as we know it on Earth. Mars samples were collected from 3.5 billion-year-old mudstones in the Yellowknife Bay Formation of Gale Crater, which Curiosity has been exploring since 2012. Scientists believe the sediment formed through the physical and chemical erosion of volcanic rocks in the pre-volcanic rocks. bottom of the lake. The rover analyzed the fragments using its Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument, which uses oxygen and high heat to convert the organic carbon in the samples to carbon dioxide. From the amount of carbon dioxide produced, the instrument calculates how much organic carbon was in the original sample and tells the exact isotope ratio, which helps scientists understand the carbon source, according to the statement. Isotopes are forms of the same chemical element that differ in the number of neutrons in their nucleus. “In this case, the isotopic composition can really only tell us which part of the total carbon is organic carbon and which part is mineral carbon,” Stern said. “While biology cannot be completely ruled out, isotopes cannot really be used to support a biological origin of this carbon, because the range overlaps with volcanic carbon and meteoric organic material, which is very likely to be the source. his. organic carbon “. However, in addition to organic carbon, researchers have identified other signs that the Gale Crater may be once supported lifeincluding the presence of chemical energy sources and chemical compounds such as oxygen, nitrogen and sulfur and low acidity. “Basically, this location would provide a habitable environment for life, if it ever existed,” Stern said in a statement. Their findings were published Monday (June 27) at the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Follow Samantha Mathewson @ Sam_Ashley13. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.
