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Themescules

Banned

Registered: 2002-08-15

Posts: 18

Re: Mars Rocks in Antarctica

In Antarctica, alot of the research they claim they are doing was to support life on other Planets particularly Mars. They would find those rocks saying they were from Mars, can anyone actually vouch that Rocks or pepples from Mars actually blew off the Planet and landed in Antarctica or other parts of Earth? If so how can this be and since no craft has ever flown back to Earth from the Red planet how can these claims be really true? Soil samples?

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"Death is the Answer to all the Questions Humanity has wondered and will always wonder about!"

Phobos

Member

Registered: 2002-01-02

Posts: 1,103

Re: Mars Rocks in Antarctica

The Viking landers analyzed the composition of both the surface and the atmosphere of Mars with onboard instruments.  Other probes that were sent to the red planet have done similiar functions.  The meteorite that might have fossils of Martian life in it contained sealed air pockets that matched the atmospheric composition of Mars and not Earth.  Anyhow, its not hard to ascertain the atmospheric composition of a planet if you've never visited it as long as you can study it's light spectrum.

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To achieve the impossible you must attempt the absurd

Themescules

Banned

Registered: 2002-08-15

Posts: 18

Re: Mars Rocks in Antarctica

[B]Thanks Phobos, one other question, can it be determined how old the meteorite is and how long ago it landed on Earth?
My main question here is, if the "Mars" rocks are old enough, do the "Sealed" air-pockets in the Mars rocks that you described still contain the actual atmosphere of the Red Planet at the time it flew off to Earth? So for example if the Mars Rocks are millions of years old do the "Sealed Air-pockets" contain the atmosphere from millions of years ago if it is sealed? Were or could the Planets from millions or even billions of years ago (Mars & Earth) might have had more "simular" atmosphere's in formation until they developed there own distinctive characteristics.[B]

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"Death is the Answer to all the Questions Humanity has wondered and will always wonder about!"

Phobos

Member

Registered: 2002-01-02

Posts: 1,103

Re: Mars Rocks in Antarctica

I'm not sure of the exact dating method they used on the meteorite but they likely used a radiometric type dating method where they measure how much decay has occured in certain isotopes.  What's especially interesting about the rock though is that it's fractures and grains point to not only it being melted and recrystallized multiple times (at least two, once during it's initial formation and once after it was blasted off the surface of Mars) but that at sometime before it landed on Earth it had experienced aqueous alteration.  Anyhow, any gas pockets in the meteorite would have retained the atmosphere of its planet at the time of it being ejected.  The atmosphere retained in the rock though might differ a little due to decay of some of the elements.  If Mars had no photosynthetic life to convert co2 into oxygen on a big scale prior to the meteor's departure a few million years ago, the atmosphere of Mars and Earth would be very different.

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To achieve the impossible you must attempt the absurd

Palomar

Member

From: USA

Registered: 2002-05-30

Posts: 9,734

Re: Mars Rocks in Antarctica

*Haven't they also identified Marsian rocks in the far reaches of Northern Canada?  I thought I heard on the news a few years ago about a rather large meteor of Marsian origin being found in Alaska or the NW Territories of Canada.

--Cindy

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We all know [i]those[/i] Venusians: Doing their hair in shock waves, smoking electrical coronas, wearing Van Allen belts and resting their tiny elbows on a Geiger counter...

--John Sladek (The New Apocrypha)

Themescules

Banned

Registered: 2002-08-15

Posts: 18

Re: Mars Rocks in Antarctica

I'm not sure of the exact dating method they used on the meteorite but they likely used a radiometric type dating method where they measure how much decay has occured in certain isotopes.  What's especially interesting about the rock though is that it's fractures and grains point to not only it being melted and recrystallized multiple times (at least two, once during it's initial formation and once after it was blasted off the surface of Mars) but that at sometime before it landed on Earth it had experienced aqueous alteration.  Anyhow, any gas pockets in the meteorite would have retained the atmosphere of its planet at the time of it being ejected.  The atmosphere retained in the rock though might differ a little due to decay of some of the elements.  If Mars had no photosynthetic life to convert co2 into oxygen on a big scale prior to the meteor's departure a few million years ago, the atmosphere of Mars and Earth would be very different.

That's all very interesting and I thank you for your detailed reply, I guess we'll never really know all the answers until we have a manned trip or have some sort of robotic craft bring back actual rock samples of the Red Planet and compare them to what has been found here on Earth. I just hope we're all alive to see this happen. Isn't Mars supposed to be closer to Earth by next August then it has been in the last 60,000 years? Too bad they couldn't have a Craft ready by then to take and bring back samples before Mars orbit is too far away again for such a quick mission.

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"Death is the Answer to all the Questions Humanity has wondered and will always wonder about!"

Phobos

Member

Registered: 2002-01-02

Posts: 1,103

Re: Mars Rocks in Antarctica

Ack, I got my wires crossed when I said they found air pockets in the meteorite that might have life.  They actually found other Martian meteorites with airpockets and compared those meteorites' composition to that of the meteorite we're talking about to verify its origin.  Anyways, I agree that if we're going to find definitive proof that Martian life ever existed we'll probably have to go the Red planet itself.

*Haven't they also identified Marsian rocks in the far reaches of Northern Canada?  I thought I heard on the news a few years ago about a rather large meteor of Marsian origin being found in Alaska or the NW Territories of Canada.

They've found about 30 Mars meteorites so far.  The rocks have been found in a number of locales including LA. I remember vaguely reading about a crater they found in Canada that might have been caused by a Martian meteorite.  Would you be talking about that by any chance?  Anyways all this talk about meteorites is making me want to go hunt for some.  The metal ones are easy to identify, they just look like bubbly globs of metal.

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To achieve the impossible you must attempt the absurd

Palomar

Member

From: USA

Registered: 2002-05-30

Posts: 9,734

Re: Mars Rocks in Antarctica

*Haven't they also identified Marsian rocks in the far reaches of Northern Canada?  I thought I heard on the news a few years ago about a rather large meteor of Marsian origin being found in Alaska or the NW Territories of Canada.

They've found about 30 Mars meteorites so far.  The rocks have been found in a number of locales including LA. I remember vaguely reading about a crater they found in Canada that might have been caused by a Martian meteorite.  Would you be talking about that by any chance?

*No, I hadn't heard of this crater in Canada until you mentioned it.    There's a meteor-impact crater within 10 miles of where I live; however, it's hard to get to because of a VERY poor road, and also you won't find me traipsing around the desert when the temperature is warm [snakes].  However, my husband and I plan to make an excursion out there this winter.  I'm going to try and find out more information about this crater.

--Cindy

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We all know [i]those[/i] Venusians: Doing their hair in shock waves, smoking electrical coronas, wearing Van Allen belts and resting their tiny elbows on a Geiger counter...

--John Sladek (The New Apocrypha)