Gale Crater Archives - Page 4 of 4 - Astrobiology

Illustrations of magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) under electron microscopes, and MTB from extreme environments on Earth and putatively ancient Mars. A The scanning electron micrograph and (B, C) transmission electron micrographs of MTB. White arrows indicate magnetosome chains, and white triangles indicate granules. D Terrestrial extremotolerant MTB and implications for ancient Mars. MTB are found to be able to resist various hostile settings, such as irradiation, hypomagnetic exposure, microgravity, metal stress, hypersalinity, acidic/hyperalkaline pH, and freezing/moderately hyperthermal temperatures. MTB emerged early in Earth’s history. Since ancient Mars was also characterized by many MTB-favorable aquatic/sediment oxic-anoxic conditions and a global magnetic field, it is proposed that Mars may have harbored MTB-like life in the past. -- ISME

Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Mars, Meteorites & Asteroids, Microbiology & Virology, Status Report

Renaissance For Magnetotactic Bacteria In Astrobiology

by Keith CowingNovember 29, 2023November 29, 2023

Capable of forming magnetofossils similar to some magnetite nanocrystals observed in the Martian meteorite ALH84001, magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) once occupied a special position in the field of astrobiology during the […]

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover captured this 360-degree panorama using its black-and-white navigation cameras, or Navcams, at a location where it collected a sample from a rock nicknamed “Sequoia.” This panorama was captured on Oct. 21 and 26, 2023, the 3,984th and 3,989th Martian days, or sols, of the mission. Larger image

Astrogeology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs

Mars Curiosity Passes 4,000 Days Doing Astrobiology And Astrogeology

by Keith CowingNovember 11, 2023November 11, 2023

Four thousand Martian days after setting its wheels in Gale Crater on Aug. 5, 2012, NASA’s Curiosity rover remains busy conducting exciting science. The rover recently drilled its 39th sample […]

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover used two different cameras to create this selfie in front of Mont Mercou, a rock outcrop that stands 20 feet tall. New analysis by Penn State researchers reveals that much of the craters on Mars today could have once been habitable rivers. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS.

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs

Curiosity Rover Finds New Evidence Of Ancient Mars Rivers, A Key Signal For Life

by Keith CowingOctober 24, 2023October 24, 2023

New analysis of data from the Curiosity rover reveals that much of the craters on Mars today could have once been habitable rivers.

Mars

Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Mars, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs

Mars Curiosity Rover Discovers Water-rich Fracture Halo’s in Gale Crater

by Keith CowingJanuary 2, 2023January 2, 2023

A research team using new methods to analyze data from NASA’s Curiosity rover and its neutron spectrometer Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons, or DAN, on Mars was able to independently verify […]

Gale Crater

Astrogeology, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release

No Oxygen Was Required To Make Manganese Oxides Found On Mars

by Keith CowingDecember 28, 2022December 28, 2022

When NASA’s Mars rovers found manganese oxides in rocks in the Gale and Endeavor craters on Mars in 2014, the discovery sparked some scientists to suggest that the red planet […]

Curiosity Takes Inventory of Key Life Ingredient on Mars

Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Tricorders & Sensors

Curiosity Takes Inventory of Key Life Ingredient on Mars

by Keith CowingJune 27, 2022April 14, 2024

Scientists using data from NASA’s Curiosity rover measured the total organic carbon – a key component in the molecules of life – in Martian rocks for the first time.