It looks like you're using an Ad Blocker.
Please white-list or disable AboveTopSecret.com in your ad-blocking tool.
Thank you.
Some features of ATS will be disabled while you continue to use an ad-blocker.
reply to post by Arken
Damn! This is my FLOWER! My Martian Flower!
A Martian Flower! Curiosity sol 132
super70
reply to post by roadgravel
Unfortunately many people feel this way, waiting for the MSM to tell us something we all know to be true, in order to make it a bona fide fact.
My personal belief is that proof will come first from an amatuer, then the MSm will have no choice but to agree. Just my thoughts.
Porosity with high aspect ratio (spherical) commonly caused by the dissolution of calcareous material.
Arken
jeep3r
Aleister
reply to post by jeep3r
Can you find the photo which the original caption was describing? Of all the rocks on all the worlds you had to walk into wine.
Here goes the image to which the original caption referred, with 'glassy luster' (see lower left arrow) & a small amount of 'vuggy porosity' being evident (upper right arrow):
Link to the original MAHLI image from sol 132:
mars.jpl.nasa.gov...edit on 21-1-2014 by jeep3r because: text
Damn! This is my FLOWER! My Martian Flower!
A Martian Flower! Curiosity sol 132
wildespace
Here's another definition for "vuggy porosity":
Porosity with high aspect ratio (spherical) commonly caused by the dissolution of calcareous material.
subsurfwiki.org...
"Calcareous" is an adjective meaning mostly or partly composed of calcium. Curiosity has seen plenty of such calcium-based minerals, such as gypsum. These minerals had formed veins, wrinkles, hollows, and other interesting features.
But you folk see the word "fossils" on Wikipedia, and take it as far as suggesting that NASA admits the possibility (or certainty) of life on Mars. That's not how it works, sorry.
jeep3r
wildespace
Here's another definition for "vuggy porosity":
Porosity with high aspect ratio (spherical) commonly caused by the dissolution of calcareous material.
subsurfwiki.org...
"Calcareous" is an adjective meaning mostly or partly composed of calcium. Curiosity has seen plenty of such calcium-based minerals, such as gypsum. These minerals had formed veins, wrinkles, hollows, and other interesting features.
But you folk see the word "fossils" on Wikipedia, and take it as far as suggesting that NASA admits the possibility (or certainty) of life on Mars. That's not how it works, sorry.
The big bad F-word (fossil) is considered 'nasty' when it comes to astrobiology, that's true. Scientists & academia will try to avoid it until there's enough data & evidence that you can't deny it any longer. But if you see something that looks similar to what this OP suggests, I see no reason to not discuss it here with some hypothetical thinking & personal views ...
I suggest we keep looking and discussing this, and let's not forget that not all on here are researchers or scientists. Yet a lot of us are interested in this subject matter and would like to share the excitement of a potential sensation.
By the way: your alternative definition of 'vuggy porosity' is also valid, no question ... thanks for looking into that for us!
galadofwarthethird
I dont think the question is "Was there once life on Mars?" Of course there was once life on mars.
But the question just may be - Was there once life as we know it on Mars. The implications of that would be mind-blowing, it would mean that all this literally once happened before. Go figure eh!
We really aren't that special. I will be patiently waiting for the day they find the remains of an old McDonald's buried hundreds of miles under the surface, now that would be impressive...Or not.
Cool thread anyways.
LordAdef
reply to post by jeep3r
I'm sure NASA will deny whatever they find, even if there's a Red Truck in front of the rover. There will be some geologist's cheap explanation to it.
"It will always be a rock"
MysterX
I'm sure NASA would absolutely LOVE to announce life past pr present..their agency would probably quadruple in size and funding almost overnight. The Government on the other hand, would definitely not love to announce it, and since they're (taxpayers in fact) paying for NASA's budget, they get to decide on what is 'discovered' or not.
NASA don't call the shots, they follow orders.
LordAdef
reply to post by Aleister
Hey Aleister, as a matter of fact my mother-in-law is a geologist.
I may send her the pictures and see what she says.