A Mars Odyssey

“We have water,” said William Boynton of the University of Arizona, lead scientist for the Thermal and Evolved-Gas Analyzer, or TEGA. “We’ve seen evidence for this water ice before in observations by the Mars Odyssey orbiter and in disappearing chunks observed by Phoenix last month, but this is the first time Martian water has been touched and tasted.”

When we think of the phrase, “Water, water, everywhere…and not a drop to drink”, we need to take a second and third look at mankind’s continuous search for water on Mars. We know with recently acquired proof there is water on this wonderful and mysterious red planet–we have seen it through images arriving from NASA’s Phoenix digging for successful testing and we have seen it from images arriving from space that has shown evidence of such. This find has been so important that an additional NASA operational funding has been extended through September 30, 2008, adding five weeks to the original 90 mission days.

Why is finding water so important? It’s not like we’re going to rush off next week to Mars as we are running short down here on Earth-not like many of us did not see that coming anyway as town and cities are on serious water rationing. Simply put-it is all about life. And life requires “liquid water”–life on Earth and possibly life on Mars–or even “somewhere out in space”.

The most important aspect of this little molecule of water is that it needs to be in a state of liquid in order to transport chemicals into and out-of cells. Things we have discovered-such as water ice and water vapor-do not have the ability we need to transfer these substances to any form of life. Proteins act as catalysts inside the cells of our body, with their proper functioning needing liquid water. But protein is not the only property important to life, as we know through our search for water.

The NASA Phoenix Lander is using a chemistry lab, TEGA, a microscope, a conductivity probe, and cameras to confirm the 2002 Mars findings regarding water ice on Mars. Being studied is the sky as well as the surface of Mars, using a Canadian laser beam instrument to observe the overhead clouds and dust, “which” according to the Canadian Space Agency is like using a 30-watt light bulb to offer the Earth a Martian laser show. Sounds pretty powerful to me!!

According to the latest NASA reports, Phoenix has completed a full-circle, color panorama of its surroundings at its landing site. “The details and patterns we see in the ground show an ice-dominated terrain as far as the eye can see,” said Mark Lemmon of Texas A&M University, lead scientist for Phoenix’s Surface Stereo Imager camera. “They help us plan measurements we’re making within reach of the robotic arm and interpret those measurements on a wider scale.”