NASA May Have Found First Evidence of Alien Life

By Jon Fern, Science Editor
Follow @jfernwriter

NASA has found venting plumes of methane on Mars, strongly suggestive of the existence of biological processes on our nearest planetary neighbor.

Chris Webster of NASA said "Strictly speaking, our observations are evidence for methane production on Mars, and in themselves cannot directly provide evidence of microbial life.

"However, from our positive detection of methane on Mars, we cannot rule out the possibility that both the low background level and the high methane values originate in part from microbial activity (methanogenesis).

"Our observations indicate that either the source shut off or the wind field at the source location changed to direct the emission away from us.

"At this time, we have no idea what we will see in the future, or if we will ever see high values again."

NASA: Methane spike

In a press conference, a spokesperson said "It's not an argument that we have found evidence of life on Mars, but it's one of the hypotheses that we must consider as we go forward into the future.This is really exciting news for us."

You can watch a live feed of the announcement by NASA here.

The following is NASA's official press release regarding the methane spike, which you can also find on their website here.

Curiosity Detects Methane Spike on Mars

Dec. 16, 2014: NASA's Mars Curiosity rover has measured a tenfold spike in methane, an organic chemical, in the atmosphere around it and detected other organic molecules in a rock-powder sample collected by the robotic laboratory’s drill.
"This temporary increase in methane -- sharply up and then back down -- tells us there must be some relatively localized source," said Sushil Atreya of the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and Curiosity rover science team. "There are many possible sources, biological or non-biological, such as interaction of water and rock."

This image illustrates possible ways methane might be added to Mars' atmosphere (sources) and removed from the atmosphere (sinks). NASA's Curiosity Mars rover has detected fluctuations in methane concentration in the atmosphere, implying both types of activity occur on modern Mars. A longer caption discusses which are sources and which are sinks. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SAM-GSFC/Univ. of Michigan

Researchers used Curiosity’s onboard Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) laboratory a dozen times in a 20-month period to sniff methane in the atmosphere. During two of those months, in late 2013 and early 2014, four measurements averaged seven parts per billion. Before and after that, readings averaged only one-tenth that level.
Curiosity also detected different Martian organic chemicals in powder drilled from a rock dubbed Cumberland, the first definitive detection of organics in surface materials of Mars. These Martian organics could either have formed on Mars or been delivered to Mars by meteorites.
Organic molecules, which contain carbon and usually hydrogen, are chemical building blocks of life, although they can exist without the presence of life. Curiosity's findings from analyzing samples of atmosphere and rock powder do not reveal whether Mars has ever harbored living microbes, but the findings do shed light on a chemically active modern Mars and on favorable conditions for life on ancient Mars.

This graphic shows tenfold spiking in the abundance of methane in the Martian atmosphere surrounding NASA's Curiosity Mars rover, as detected by a series of measurements made with the Tunable Laser Spectrometer instrument in the rover's Sample Analysis at Mars laboratory suite. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

"We will keep working on the puzzles these findings present," said John Grotzinger, Curiosity project scientist of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena (Caltech). "Can we learn more about the active chemistry causing such fluctuations in the amount of methane in the atmosphere? Can we choose rock targets where identifiable organics have been preserved?"
Researchers worked many months to determine whether any of the organic material detected in the Cumberland sample was truly Martian. Curiosity’s SAM lab detected in several samples some organic carbon compounds that were, in fact, transported from Earth inside the rover. However, extensive testing and analysis yielded confidence in the detection of Martian organics.

Identifying which specific Martian organics are in the rock is complicated by the presence of perchlorate minerals in Martian rocks and soils. When heated inside SAM, the perchlorates alter the structures of the organic compounds, so the identities of the Martian organics in the rock remain uncertain.
"This first confirmation of organic carbon in a rock on Mars holds much promise," said Curiosity participating scientist Roger Summons of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge. "Organics are important because they can tell us about the chemical pathways by which they were formed and preserved. In turn, this is informative about Earth-Mars differences and whether or not particular environments represented by Gale Crater sedimentary rocks were more or less favorable for accumulation of organic materials. The challenge now is to find other rocks on Mount Sharp that might have different and more extensive inventories of organic compounds."
Researchers also reported that Curiosity's taste of Martian water, bound into lakebed minerals in the Cumberland rock more than three billion years ago, indicates the planet lost much of its water before that lakebed formed and continued to lose large amounts after.
SAM analyzed hydrogen isotopes from water molecules that had been locked inside a rock sample for billions of years and were freed when SAM heated it, yielding information about the history of Martian water. The ratio of a heavier hydrogen isotope, deuterium, to the most common hydrogen isotope can provide a signature for comparison across different stages of a planet's history.
"It's really interesting that our measurements from Curiosity of gases extracted from ancient rocks can tell us about loss of water from Mars," said Paul Mahaffy, SAM principal investigator of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and lead author of a report published online this week by the journal Science
The ratio of deuterium to hydrogen has changed because the lighter hydrogen escapes from the upper atmosphere of Mars much more readily than heavier deuterium. In order to go back in time and see how the deuterium-to-hydrogen ratio in Martian water changed over time, researchers can look at the ratio in water in the current atmosphere and water trapped in rocks at different times in the planet’s history.
Martian meteorites found on Earth also provide some information, but this record has gaps. No known Martian meteorites are even close to the same age as the rock studied on Mars, which formed about 3.9 billion to 4.6 billion years ago, according to Curiosity’s measurements.
The ratio that Curiosity found in the Cumberland sample is about one-half the ratio in water vapor in today's Martian atmosphere, suggesting much of the planet's water loss occurred since that rock formed. However, the measured ratio is about three times higher than the ratio in the original water supply of Mars, based on assumption that supply had a ratio similar to that measured in Earth's oceans. This suggests much of Mars' original water was lost before the rock formed.

Credits and more information:

Production editor: Dr. Tony Phillips | Credit: Science@NASA
Curiosity is one element of NASA's ongoing Mars research and preparation for a human mission to Mars in the 2030s. Caltech manages the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, and JPL manages Curiosity rover science investigations for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The SAM investigation is led by Paul Mahaffy of Goddard. Two of SAM instruments key in these discoveries are the Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer, developed at Goddard, and the Tunable Laser Spectrometer, developed at JPL.
The results of the Curiosity rover investigation into methane detection and the Martian organics in an ancient rock were discussed at a news briefing Tuesday at the American Geophysical Union's convention in San Francisco. The methane results are described in a paper published online this week in the journal Science by NASA scientist Chris Webster of JPL, and co-authors.
A report on organics detection in the Cumberland rock by NASA scientist Caroline Freissenet, of Goddard, and co-authors, is pending publication.
For copies of the new Science papers about Mars methane and water, visit:http://go.nasa.gov/1cbk35X
For more information about Curiosity, visit http://www.nasa.gov/msl and http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl/
Learn about NASA’s Journey to Mars at http://www.nasa.gov/content/nasas-journey-to-mars/


Image credit: Dust devils on Mars via Softpedia

Report Warns Life on Earth is Facing Mass Extinction

By Jon Fern

A recent study published in Nature has outlined the main threats to species around the globe, and its consensus is that a major extinction event could occur within the next century. The event, which some commentators suggest is already well underway, is known as the Holocene extinction, named for the geological age in which we are living. It is also referred to in the literature as the sixth extinction, since there have already been five major extinctions in Earth's history.

This is no light matter; the report estimates that there could be as many as 36,000 species disappearing every year. "In general the state of biodiversity is worsening, in many cases significantly," marine ecologist Derek Tittensor says in the report, although in the same source publication Henrique Pereira warns that "There is a huge uncertainty in projecting future extinction rates."

The most at-risk animal groups are amphibians, according to Nature, with 41% of species threatened with extinction. 26% of mammals and 13% of birds are also at risk. There are also an estimated 993 insect species close to extinction, representing an enormous global biomass.

The main threats to biodiversity range from exploitation of individual species, such as the exotic Phillipines tarsier pictured above, which is caught and sold in the pet trade, to outright habitat loss. Other threats include habitat degradation, climate change, competition from invasive species, pollution and disease.

Quantifiying the threat of extinction to the total of living species is problematic, however; it is projected that there could be up to 11 million animal species on Earth, while only around 1.3 million have been described by science. However, the die-off rate of the species we do know about is alarming, as are the links to anthropogenic climate change and habitat removal, and the weight of evidence suggests that whether or not a mass extinction event is currently underway, or is on the horizon, humanity's self-appointed role as custodian of life on Earth is questionable to say the least.



For more information on endangered species, please visit the IUCN Red List website.

Picture credit: 'Phillipine Tarsier' copyright of Jeremy Villasis, all rights reserved.

Festive Facts: The Amazing Science of Christmas Animals

By Jon Fern

Christmas is galloping towards us at a terrific speed, so let's take a look at some lesser-known facts about a few animals associated with the festive season.

European robin, Erithacus rubecula.

1. Robins, and indeed all other birds, are dinosaurs. The scientific consensus is that birds are in fact avian dinosaurs.
2. Despite their apparently friendly nature, male robins are territorially aggressive, and confrontations between adult birds are often fatal.
3. Robins will nest almost anywhere, including kettles and hats (as long as they're not in use, obviously...)
4. Robins can visually sense magnetic fields, possibly making use of quantum entanglement.
5. Victorian postmen wore red jackets; the robins on Christmas cards were originally emblematic of the postal service that delivered said cards. (Not science, but interesting.)

Polar bear, Ursus maritimus.

1. The polar bear is closely related to the extinct Irish brown bear, and may even be a direct descendant.
2. Polar bears are almost invisible under infrared photography, thanks to super-efficient insulation.
3. They overheat at only 10 °C (50 °F).
4. Their hair is not actually white. It's transparent. Also, polar bears have black skin.
5. The presence of polar bears is used as an indicator of ecosystem health. However, with polar habitats shrinking as a result of climate change, polar bears are among the most threatened species in the world, with a projected loss of two thirds of their current population by 2050.

Reindeer, Rangifer tarandus.

1. Reindeer can communicate social status by clicking their knees.
2. Reindeer can see ultraviolet light. This ability is vital to their survival in the wild.
3. Reindeer don't just eat leaves. They also eat lemmings. Fish and mushrooms also supplement their diet.
4. Reindeer can run at up to 50 mph (80 km/h).
5. Reindeer are an important prey item in the wild, with eagles, brown bears, polar bears, wolves and wolverines feeding on them.

So there you have it. Now you can impress friends and family over the Christmas period with a list of fascinating facts about your favourite festive animals.

Happy Holidays from NatureWire.



Picture credits: 1, 2, 3: Wikimedia Commons, 4: copyright SMG via Panoramio.

New York, New Frog: Leopard Frog Species Found in New York City

New leopard frog found in New York. Picture credit: Matthew Schlesinger, New York Natural Heritage Program, via National Geographic.

By Jon Fern, Science Editor

It’s one of the most heavily populated places on Earth, and probably the last place you would imagine a new species to pop (or hop...) up in, but New York City is home to a frog that’s only now been described by science.

The leopard frog, Rana kauffeldi, is described in a paper published in Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution entitled A new species of leopard frog (Anura: Ranidae) from the urban northeastern US. Its natural habitat includes coastal marshes and low-lying floodplain, which explains why low-lying Staten Island, where the new species was found, suits this little amphibian so well.

“I’d spent three years studying leopard frogs in New Jersey and so I was familiar with how the call was supposed to sound like. After I spent some time on Staten Island I knew straight away that the call there was a different one entirely,” Jeremy Feinberg told the Independent. Feinberg was part of the team from Rutgers University that has been investigating the new frog and its range, now thought to span a strip of coastland from Connecticut all the way down to North Carolina.

Commenting on the study, Professor Brad Shaffer of the University of California, Los Angeles, said: “If there is a single lesson to take from this study it’s that those who love nature and want to conserve it need to shut down their computers, get outside and study the plants and animals in their own backyards.”

Still, it’s rare that something like this should happen. As the National Geographic put it, “Only the second new frog species found in the continental United States in the past 30 years, it (R. kauffeldi) remained hidden in plain sight in a city of 8.4 million people.”