MARS MYSTERY SOLVED
For a while now, there has been evidence that water has been found on Mars, but in what form? Thus far, it was discovered as subterranean in the form of ice. On September 24, 2015, NASA made an official announcement of a long-time mystery on Mars has been solved. In this author’s determination from experience, NASA has not been prone to overstating mission parameters at any time. This event is no different, as NASA has been diligent to invite to a media conference meeting a brief presentation from a panel of principals investigating the discovery:
NASA will detail a major science finding from the agency’s ongoing exploration of Mars during a news briefing at 11:30 a.m. EDT on Monday, Sept. 28 at the James Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters in Washington. The event will be broadcast live on NASA Television and the agency’s website.
News conference participants will be:
· Jim Green, director of planetary science at NASA Headquarters
· Michael Meyer, lead scientist for the Mars Exploration Program at NASA Headquarters
· Lujendra Ojha of the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta
· Mary Beth Wilhelm of NASA’s Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, California and the Georgia Institute of Technology
· Alfred McEwen, principal investigator for the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment, University of Arizona, Tucson
A brief question-and-answer session will take place during the event with reporters on site and by phone. Members of the public also can ask questions during the briefing using #AskNASA.
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It seems September has been the month for so much speculation, including conspiracy theories from asteroids striking the earth, a blood moon doomsday, a “Marshenge” (Stonehenge on Mars), alien life, CERN collider (creating a black hole) and the recent papal visit to the US. What timing, is all this author can say, who has spent the past month doing whatever possible to debunk and dispel such cataclysmic assumptions. As late as two days ago, some were even speculating this was a ploy by NASA to promote the new movie, “The Martian” with Matt Damon! If anything, it would be the movie proponents trying to time their media release with NASA! Please, is this the descent to the depths of conspiracy theories when an organization like NASA is under more scrutiny to “get it right” than almost any other department reporting to the government? Please, if in doubt, please research the real history of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and its attention to the ultimate in detail.
Well, in the past hour the verdict is in and the media conference has verified that in certain conditions, liquid water has been found to exist on Mars. Please note that the term, liquid is stupendous! This is a huge benefit for upcoming manned Mars missions.
If anything, NASA should be greatly commended by every member of the public on this momentous discovery amid a tenuous, years-long number of missions with continuous scrutiny, research, experimentation, and just plain paying attention to every detail. Congratulations, NASA!
The following is a NASA YouTube video animation of the area where water tracks have been discovered with caption:
This animation simulates a fly-around look at one of the places on Mars where dark streaks advance down slopes during warm seasons, possibly involving liquid water. This site is within Hale Crater. The streaks are roughly the length of a football field.
The bottom line of this historic discovery is the future of space exploration is all the more plausible where water/ice is being discovered in more locations in our solar system. These are truly exciting times in which we live.
Universal Digest