Astronomers have detected
huge plumes of methane on Mars, which may have a biological origin. Further work needs to be done, which will include spectroscopically analyzing the various associated sulfur species. This will allow sophisticated computer modeling simulators to digitally reconstruct the smell, which will be used to differentiate between biological and geologic processes. See
Universe Today or The
Planetary Society Blog for more mature interpretations.
I should point out that as my current employer only gets normal science, and not science express, it will be a while until I can comment intelligently on this paper.
ReplyDeleteWhich makes you wonder:
If a journal designed for rapid releases isn't subscribed to by anyone (my current employer has the best geoscience library on the continent), how effective is it?