Martian soil may reveal findings that are "Earth shattering" - Polidicks

[quote]Scientists working on NASA's six-wheeled rover on Mars have a problem. But it's a good problem. They have some exciting new results from one of the rover's instruments. On the one hand, they'd like to tell everybody what they found, but on the other, they have to wait because they want to make sure their results are not just some fluke or error in their instrument. It's a bind scientists frequently find themselves in, because by their nature, scientists like to share their results. At the same time, they're cautious because no one likes to make a big announcement and then have to say "never mind." [b]The exciting results are coming from an instrument in the rover called SAM. "We're getting data from SAM as we sit here and speak, and the data looks really interesting," John Grotzinger, the principal investigator for the rover mission, says during my visit last week to his office at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. That's where data from SAM first arrive on Earth. "The science team is busily chewing away on it as it comes down," says Grotzinger. SAM is a kind of miniature chemistry lab. Put a sample of Martian soil or rock or even air inside SAM, and it will tell you what the sample is made of. 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.[/b] Grotzinger can see the pained look on my face as I wait, hoping he'll tell me what the heck he's found, but he's not providing any more information. So why doesn't Grotzinger want to share his exciting news? The main reason is caution. Grotzinger and his team were almost stung once before. When SAM analyzed an air sample, it looked like there was methane in it, and at least here on Earth, some methane comes from living organisms. But Grotzinger says they held up announcing the finding because they wanted to be sure they were measuring Martian air, and not air brought along from the rover's launchpad at Cape Canaveral. "We knew from the very beginning that we had this risk of having brought air from Florida. And we needed to diminish it and then make the measurement again," he says. And when they made the measurement again, the signs of methane disappeared. Grotzinger says it will take several weeks before he and his team are ready to talk about their latest finding. In the meantime he'll fend off requests from pesky reporters, and probably from NASA brass as well. Like any big institution, NASA would love to trumpet a major finding, especially at a time when budget decisions are being made. Nothing succeeds like success, as the saying goes. Richard Zare, a chemist at Stanford University, appreciates the uncomfortable position John Grotzinger is in. He's been there. In 1996, he was part of a team that reported finding organic compounds in a meteorite from Mars that landed in Antarctica. When the news came out, it caused a huge sensation because finding organic compounds in a Martian rock suggested the possibility at least that there was once life on Mars. "You're bursting with a feeling that you want to share this information, and it's frustrating when you feel you can't talk about it, "says Zare. It wasn't scientific caution that kept Zare from announcing his results. It was a rule many scientific journals enforce that says scientists are not allowed to talk about their research until the day it's officially published. Zare had to follow the rules if he wanted his paper to come out. He did break down and tell his family. "I remember at the dinner table with great excitement explaining to my wife, Susan, and my daughter, Bethany, what it was we were doing," says Zare. And then he experienced something many parents can relate to when talking to their kids. "Bethany looked at me and said, 'pass the ketchup.' So, not everybody was as excited as I was," he says. Zare says in a way, scientists are like artists. Sharing what they do is a big part of why they get out of bed in the morning. "How many composers would actually compose music if they were told no one else could listen to their compositions? How many painters would make a painting if they were told no one else could see them?" says Zare. It's the same for scientists. "The great joy of science is to be able to share it. And so you want to say, 'Isn't this interesting? Isn't that cool?' " For now, though, we'll have to wait to see what's got Mars rover scientists itching to say what they found.[/quote] Source: [url]http://www.npr.org/2012/11/20/165513016/big-news-from-mars-rover-scientists-mum-for-now[/url]

[QUOTE]"We knew from the very beginning that we had this risk of having brought air from Florida. And we needed to diminish it and then make the measurement again," he says. And when they made the measurement again, the signs of methane disappeared.[/QUOTE] Ergh.

Although one has to remember that what the media and the general public consider "earth shattering" might be a bit different to the scientists consider "earth shattering".

I don't suppose that by "earth shattering" they mean they've found a massive death star laser just below the martian sands?

[QUOTE=BrainDeath;38528458]I don't suppose that by "earth shattering" they mean they've found a massive death star laser just below the martian sands?[/QUOTE] Fucking Darth Vader leaving scrap metal in our galaxy.

I'd be willing to bet the results they have show traces of some organic compound in the terrain, much like the air sample they collected. However, being in the soil there's less of a chance it was just trapped in the rover when it launched and subsequently released when the rover started to move.

don't you mean mars shattering?

Maybe this is finally the moment in humanity's history when we find out we're not alone? I doubt the discovery is something that exciting, but crossing fingers and keeping hopes up as always.

[QUOTE=Orkel;38528585]Maybe this is finally the moment in humanity's history when we find out we're not alone? I doubt the discovery is something that exciting, but crossing fingers and keeping hopes up as always.[/QUOTE] I doubt it, there may be life out there, but I'll be hard pressed to believe there is anything significant on mars

Cyberdemon?

Fossilized animals maybe?

[QUOTE=carcarcargo;38528620]I doubt it, there may be life out there, but I'll be hard pressed to believe there is anything significant on mars[/QUOTE]and then suddenly galactic alien precursor race science artifacts all over the damn place

you know what's going to happen, this is going to explode despite the scientists warning against people going apeshit about it and then there'll be a backlash when it turns out to be false or misinterpreted. I'll be happy when I'm wrong

bet it gonna be something like "5% more silicon in soil than expected" the world will never be the same

Oil

[QUOTE=Awesomecaek;38528758]bet it gonna be something like "5% more silicon in soil than expected" the world will never be the same[/QUOTE] I'm going to imagine it's that, so I won't be disappointed when it's inevitably not as amazing as the article makes it sound

This article gave me blue balls.

[QUOTE=fritzel;38528761]Oil[/QUOTE] Yes please, yes yes yes. Nothing would get us in to space faster than the promise of more oil.

[QUOTE=StickyNade;38529348]Yes please, yes yes yes. Nothing would get us in to space faster than the promise of more oil.[/QUOTE] or anything that can be used as a viable source of energy indeed.

[QUOTE=Amiga OS;38529631]America would liberate the fuck out of that planet.[/QUOTE] Free the martians from the tyranny of foreign space radiation!

[QUOTE=StickyNade;38529348]Yes please, yes yes yes. Nothing would get us in to space faster than the promise of more oil.[/QUOTE] Not only that, but the very presence of Oil on mars would show that the planet once had life on it.

[QUOTE=Deiru;38529721]Not only that, but the very presence of Oil on mars would show that the planet once had life on it.[/QUOTE] BOOOOOORRRING

Maybe they found traces of H2O under the soil. Kind of like if you dig deep enough the dry dirt gets a bit moist. Those labs are extremely sensitive so it could pick up on the smallest trace of it, and it does snow on Mars, after all

[QUOTE=Orkel;38528585]Maybe this is finally the moment in humanity's history when we find out we're not alone? I doubt the discovery is something that exciting, but crossing fingers and keeping hopes up as always.[/QUOTE] Just like Mass Effect! Except because this is real life there won't be a sharp decline in quality when EA takes it over!

[QUOTE=TheTalon;38529740]Maybe they found traces of H2O under the soil. Kind of like if you dig deep enough the dry dirt gets a bit moist. Those labs are extremely sensitive so it could pick up on the smallest trace of it, and it does snow on Mars, after all[/QUOTE] It snows carbon dioxide on mars. Though we already know there is water in the form of ice under the surface. [editline]20th November 2012[/editline] It also has two polar ice caps! (consisting of both water ice and dry ice)

[QUOTE=TheTalon;38529740]Maybe they found traces of H2O under the soil. Kind of like if you dig deep enough the dry dirt gets a bit moist. Those labs are extremely sensitive so it could pick up on the smallest trace of it, and it does snow on Mars, after all[/QUOTE] They already know about water ice in the dirt, their just looking for liquid water near the surface

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ot73XFXagMw[/media]

So, why go public that they may have found something special if they aren't willing to discuss what they found? Sounds like playground antics; "I've got a secret everybody but don't try and get me to tell it!"

I wouldn't hold my breath for this one. If they haven't found more methane after the last sample then there's a probably pretty good chance it was just an apparition of some methane from earth

[QUOTE=ChristopherB;38530792]So, why go public that they may have found something special if they aren't willing to discuss what they found? Sounds like playground antics; "I've got a secret everybody but don't try and get me to tell it!"[/QUOTE] It's not that simple. They have to keep interest up otherwise the finding will be awash with the day's news when it finally comes out. Announcing it now and being wrong would further damage their credibility, and not saying anything makes people question whether they're actually accomplishing anything. They're sort of between a rock and a hard place.