Why is NASA rejecting definitive proof of life on Mars?

The Curiosity rover has photographed what appears to be light emanating from the ground on Mars. UFO and alien life enthusiasts as well as conspiracy theorists have all claimed the light is evidence of life on the Red Planet. NASA however, is not so sure.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - A glint of light has been captured in one of a series of images taken by the Curiosity rover on mars. The apparition is intriguing to UFO enthusiasts who suggest that the light is emanating from the ground and that it could be evidence of intelligent alien life on Mars, possibly living in subterranean dwellings.

The consensus among scientists seems to be that life can't really live on the surface of Mars because the planet has a thin atmosphere. The atmosphere, which is rich in carbon dioxide, is also very thin so that even high-speed winds would be felt on the surface as little more than a breeze.

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The atmosphere does little to block harsh radiation from the Sun, which likely sterilizes the ground. The thin atmosphere also allows water to sublimate off the surface of the planet which is possibly why no such water has been directly observed although it is believed that Mars once had plenty of the resource.

For these reasons, the most likely place for life to exist on Mars in under the surface. Mars landers since the 1970's have carried probes for digging or drilling into the soil to test it for signs of life. All tests seem to indicate that life does not exist on the planet and likely never has, although some scientists dispute this. The extreme unliklihood of intelligent life on Mars is the reason why NASA scientgists are sure this is just a natural phenomenon.

For NASA's part, any future human colonization of the planet will likely rely on underground dwellings for safety of the inhabitants.

As for the light seen in the image, there is no conclusive proof that it was anything other than a glint of sunlight off the flat surface of a rock or some other natural anomaly. There is no reason to believe, NASA scientists say, that it could be the product of intelligent life.

Other examples of false alarms are plentiful. In the 1970s, NASA photographed what looked like a human face on Mars. Subsequent high resolution images captured in the 1990s revealed it to be an illusion and the face was merely a collection of sand dunes.

Mars may have never had life evolve on its surface, but it's likely to have life on it before too long. The United States as well as several private corporations have launched serious ventures to colonize the Red Planet within the coming decades.

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