The Bridge of Time: Stone-Inscriptions from the Past
a piece of rock not formed within a few days But it takes quite a long time. Hence what appears in each stone. Therefore, it can be compared as an “inscription” from the past that can be shown that What happened when it started?
That fact has always excited scientists on Earth when studying fragments of meteorites from Mars. After all, very few scientists on Earth are “sure” that it was a piece of debris that fell off Mars. Our neighboring red planet
So far there have been only five similar meteorites or meteorites from Mars.
One of them is Meteors or meteorites “Thissint” It was obtained by scientists 12 years ago when a meteorite from Mars shattered upon entering Earth’s atmosphere. Send a splinter of debris to fall to the earth. The desert area of Tissant Morocco on July 18, 2011.
On preliminary investigations, scientists found that Thissint meteorite Probably hundreds or even billions of years ago. Born out of Mars with some geological phenomena such as volcanic eruptions. or hit by a meteorite, etc.
But this Tissint star meteor There is much more interesting than its enormous longevity.
An international team of researchers led by Philip Schmitt-Coplin Biological chemist from the Technical University of Munich in Germany. checked and found Within this tissint meteorite there are many “organics compounds”, at least five different types.
resulting in it becoming It is “the most diverse inscription of organic compounds” so far detected in any other Martian meteorite. Or from the samples collected by the rover to analyze during exploration on the surface of Mars.
The findings were recently published in an academic journal. “Science Advances” (the journal Science Advances) on January 11th.
What is an “organic compound”? Organic compounds are a molecule consisting of carbon atoms binds to the atoms of other constituents one or more types These other atoms are usually hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and sulfur atoms, or other elements.
The key point is These organic compounds are found in abundance in all life on Earth. Finding it in a rock from space like this makes it “possible” that at the time this rock formed on Mars, there were “Living things” also appeared at that time.
but because of that Such organic compounds can be formed from “Non-biological processes” as well, so scientists can only assume that “Possible” to be caused by living things But it is also possible that It may also be caused by natural processes that do not require living organisms.
In other words, organic compounds found It does not show that on Mars “there was” life “for sure” itself.
For example, the organic compounds the researchers found most in the Tissint meteorite were magnesium organic compounds. This has not been seen in any previous samples of Martian meteors.
The research team believes it formed under high pressure conditions. plus high temperature Within the mantle below Mars’ crust, for example.
besides that The team also found other organic compounds, including aliphatic derivatives of carboxylic acids, which are structurally identical to the amino acids the human body uses. Proteins, aldehydes (aldehydes) compounds formed by redundant carbon bonds. or use many electrons Co-acting with oxygen atoms, olefins or hydrocarbons. which is a compound in which one or more atoms are double bonded together, and the final compound is Polyaromatic (polyaromatics), which are complex hydrocarbons with a ring-shaped structure, etc.
Another noteworthy point is that This isn’t the first time organic compounds have been found in rock samples from Mars. In 1984, scientists found several organic compounds in the Allan Hills meteorite 84001 (ALH84001) that fell to Earth. area of Antarctica
It has been debated for many years whether Are the organic compounds found from life on Mars? Until July 2022, the research team confirmed that The compounds found in ALH 84001 likely originate from fundamentally geological reactions. billions of years ago
which also makes it possible that Organic compounds found in tissint. It may be caused by the same geological processes.
But that doesn’t mean this discovery has no value. No meaning. On the contrary, Andrew Steele, an astronomer at the Carnegie Institution of Science in Washington, D.C., as part of the research team and part of the Mars surface exploration mission team.Porseverance and Curios City NASA confirms that gaining a deeper understanding of the processes and range of events that formed many organic compounds in the past.
It will help us understand more, at least in two ways. That can cause Can “living things” live on Mars? and most importantly
That Mars Humans can use it to live or not.