Diligence confirms the relevance of searching for life on Mars

This content was released on October 07, 2021 – 9:54 PM
07. October 2021 – 21:54

(AFP)

The rover Perseverance, which landed on Mars in February, presented its first scientific results on Thursday (7) confirming the interest in searching for signs of life on the landing site, a ravine believed to be an Ooty lake.

The supercomputer, attached to NASA’s Robot Mast, made it possible to observe the surroundings of the Jessero abyss on the ground of the Red Planet and send a series of images via satellite.

These first high-resolution photos confirmed that they were seen from orbit, that is, about 3.6 billion years ago, a closed lake fed by the mouth of a river was in a ditch about 35 kilometers in diameter.

The study, first published in the journal Science after the landing of perseverance, provides many details about the history of the abyss. Supercam allowed sediment layers to be identified as “the best candidates for detecting signs of a past life,” the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) explained when it presented the findings of its study to the press. , Nicholas Mangold.

The astrologer explained that these layers, which come from a 40-meter-high mound called the Kodiak, are “clay or sand sediments in which it is easy to preserve organic matter.”

– ‘Organic matter’ –

Sylvester Maurice from the Institute of Astrophysics and Planetary Research at the University of Paul Sapadier in Toulouse explained that organic matter produced by living organisms is made up of a mixture of complex molecules of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and some oxygen.

“We found this kind of material in the depths of the earth’s soil and in the sedimentary sediments of the Delta River, which confirms the interest of astronomy in the Jessero Valley. [ciência que estuda a vida no universo]He added.

The diligence also found the unexpected presence of large boulders and rock blocks, which is evidence of the presence of strong river currents in the past. According to the study, the end of the logastrin period in the valley may be associated with greater climate change.

“What kind of climate did this change create? Desertification or glaciation? That’s what we’re investigating,” Mangold explained.

All of these observations made by the rover at a distance of more than 2 km from the surveyed geological systems will now allow the equipment to focus on collecting the samples, which should be brought to Earth for study by 2030.

Two robots, Curiosity and Insight, are currently exploring other points on the surface of Mars.

In September 2022, the Russian-European Exomers mission is expected to send a robot to Mars, designed to drill more than a meter into the red planet’s ground, which is an unheard of question.