Curiosity may have big news soon

[MikeK]

http://www.wbur.org/npr/165513016/big-news-from-mars-rover-scientists-mum-for-now

[HLA-27b]

They don't want another Italian job. Quite understandable.

But what did they found? Methane in the Martian atmosphere? This was known (or suspected) for a long time, not news really. There is got to be something else.
Now if they found something in the atmosphere that implies living organisms then...........then we found the first.....aliens!!!

[MikeK]

But they haven't officially confirmed methane.  So it could be the confirmation they'll announce.  Last week or so they had made some methane measurements, but the detection threshold was higher than the suspected global dissipated level.  And they said they were going to recalibrate to achieve a much lower detection threshold.

Whatever it is, I can't wait for Santa!

[HLA-27b]

The existence of Methane on Mars has been known for a while now, another confirmation wouldn't make big news. The problem is that it shouldn't have been there - it decays under UV. Then there are seasonal changes in the amount of methane and they can't explain where it goes either because the depletion rate is much faster than the UV decay. The hopes are high for it to be some sort of biological process i.e. aliens, but there are other likely explanations as well. I'm rooting for the aliens anyway




http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere_of_Mars

Trace amounts of methane (CH4), at the level of several parts per billion (ppb), were first reported in Mars's atmosphere by a team at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in 2003.[3][19] In March 2004 the Mars Express Orbiter[20] and ground based observations from Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope[21] also suggested the presence of methane in the atmosphere with a mole fraction of about 10 nmol/mol.[22]

Because methane on Mars would quickly break down due to ultraviolet radiation from the Sun and chemical reactions with other gases, its reported persistent presence in the atmosphere also necessitates the existence of a source to continually replenish the gas.[23] Current photochemical models alone can explain neither the fast appearance nor the disappearance of the methane, or its reported variations in space and time.[24] It had been proposed that the methane might be replenished by meteorites entering the atmosphere of Mars,[25] but researchers from Imperial College London found that the volumes of methane released this way are too low to sustain the measured levels of the gas.
[...]

[G7PSK]

Most likely got a photo of a little green man in a traffic wardens uniform slapping a parking ticket onto the rover.

[firewalker]

I believe the Methane was a just fluke (air brought from Earth). It has something to do with soil samples.

Alexander.

[Sionyn]

maybe they've found Mayans selling fake iphone chargers

[JuKu]

I believe the Methane was a just fluke (air brought from Earth). It has something to do with soil samples.

Nope, it was discovered in 2003, and found to be seasonally dependent in 2004, from orbit. One of the reasons why Curiosity was sent was to find out the reason.

[MikeK]

I believe the Methane was a just fluke (air brought from Earth). It has something to do with soil samples.

Nope, it was discovered in 2003, and found to be seasonally dependent in 2004, from orbit. One of the reasons why Curiosity was sent was to find out the reason.

There were different methane discoveries.  The one that turned out to be a fluke was the measurement that Curiosity performed, and it was indeed found to be air brought from Earth.

There have been separate methane discoveries from orbit.

[GK]

I had onions for dinner. Lots of methane around me at the moment. Dunno why they had to send a probe all the way to Mars.

[xygor]

This is old.  From Spirirt.  But in case anyone hasn't seen it:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/74041939@N07/7733924430/#

[EEVblog]

I'm betting the aliens ran out of ink:


Dave.

[george graves]

With this statement:

Grotzinger says they recently put a soil sample in SAM, and the analysis shows something earthshaking. "This data is gonna be one for the history books. It's looking really good," he says.

If it's anything less then life on Mars - I hope someone bends him over and gives him a spanking.

[glicos]

Maybe they found Optimus Prime roving around Mars...

[EEVblog]

Grotzinger says they recently put a soil sample in SAM, and the analysis shows something earthshaking. "This data is gonna be one for the history books. It's looking really good," he says.

If it's anything less then life on Mars - I hope someone bends him over and gives him a spanking.

I agree!
He has set the bar high with that statement.
If they have just found some calcium-watchmacallit that will only give all the geologists a nerdgasm, then prepare to be attacked with pitchforks!

Dave.

[peter.mitchell]

Either that or it will be the lamest/copolest practical joke ever;

We have made a discovery! We have found traces of magnesium iron silicate hydroxide, very exciting, it looks like curiosity is http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cummingtonite, budum tsch!

[Sionyn]

how long till the religious extremists turn up and claim it was a trick by the devil ?

[MikeK]

5 minutes.

[MikeK]

According to The Register: "Grotzinger plans to attend the American Geophysical Union's fall meeting on December 3 and will present some results then."

[HackedFridgeMagnet]

Doesn't sound like they photographed martians then.

[MikeK]

Either that or it will be the lamest/copolest practical joke ever;

We have made a discovery! We have found traces of magnesium iron silicate hydroxide, very exciting, it looks like curiosity is http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cummingtonite, budum tsch!

To be fair, neither NASA nor the Curiosity team have announced any discovery yet.  What we've heard is snippets from an interview.

[MikeK]

I guess too many people had too high of hopes:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jatX4MrMZgJpnEcPbSVm31ePbErQ?docId=CNG.6611fb1b0c38c4c3fd36e91b1738c55e.f31