Mars 'mystery solved': has Nasa found water flowing on the Red Planet?

Telegraph ^ | 27 Sep 2015 | Emily Gosden

[aquila48]

Nasa is preparing to unveil a "major science finding" from its Mars exploration programme, amid speculation it could have found water flowing on the Red Planet. The space agency has scheduled a press conference for Monday, in which it promises to announce a "Mars Mystery Solved". While many are hoping for a discovery of alien life, the leading theory among those who follow research into Mars is an announcement of the presence of liquid water. The speculation has been driven by Nasa's disclosure that Lujendra Ojha, a PhD candidate who discovered possible signs of water as a 21-year-old undergraduate student in 2011, will be speaking as part of the announcement.

[Vermont Lt]

Good. We will build space ships to transport whomever wants to go back.

So Sorry. One way tickets only.

[blueunicorn6]

Rocks.

I’ll bet they found rocks on Mars.

Everywhere you go, there they are.

Rocks.

[Jack Hydrazine]

Ya think???

[R_Kangel]

..... If it's flowing water or even standing water on the Martian surface, there have been numerous images from NASA suggesting water or at least fluid on the surface making their rounds on the internet for years.

[Jack Hydrazine]

Maybe it’s lakes of liquid mercury!

[Cementjungle]

In that second picture, it sure looks like a lake or something right there next to that pine forest. If they can get a lander to make it though all that brush and trees and stuff, it could make it to the lake and see what’s really in there. Certainly if it’s water, then there might be the possibility of life!

[R_Kangel]

"Maybe it’s lakes of liquid mercury!..."

.... Could be almost anything in either liquid or frozen form I guess. However I think the Martian political correctness warriors might take offense to calling that stuff Mercury .... I think we should just call it "Liquid Mars" to prevent any lawsuits from Mars Rights groups.

[Jack Hydrazine]

NASA isn’t going to do that.

[faithhopecharity]

Muslims belong on Mars. Mars is the war god, after all

[Georgia Girl 2]

I smell a scam. :-)

[faithhopecharity]

Obama’s BC is on planet Ferengi (the liars ) but he had a Borg (dictator) progenetior. Alien miscegenation, wouldn’t you know?

[seawolf101]

Houston we have a problem.

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks aquila48, extra to APoD.

[cripplecreek]

It won’t be standing water. Its too cold and the atmospheric pressure causes it to boil away as soon as its exposed.

[null and void]

Did they find some stoned corpses of raped women who had mutilated genitalia?

Here ya go:

[DoughtyOne]

I knew it! = :^)

[MrEdd]

You don’t really expect us to admit we are old enough to know who that is, do you?

[Smokin' Joe]

Back when I was an undergrad, we were looking at Viking images of the Red Planet with a guy from NASA, and they sure looked like they had been created by flowing water. We guessed then that the water was bound frozen in the subsurface and had been released by impacts, causing the canyon-like features, then either evaporated or sublimated (or possibly even soaked in).

That was nearly 40 years ago, so it is odd this is just getting traction now.

[Smokin' Joe]

“We have found Muslims on Mars! Allah be praised!”

Great! Now, let's send the rest of the followers of the Prophet up.

[GreenHornet]

They will announce that there is no evidence of life on Mars....however, there is some good news: they just saved a bundle on their car insurance by switching to GEICO.