Good News, Bad News! California scientists discover water --on Mars

JPL Managers find evidence of recent water flows on Martain surface.

The good news? Scientists in California have found water! The bad news? It's on Mars. Scientists from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena California have announced through NASA, the finding of recent water flows on Mars, demonstrating the planet still has liquid water at the surface.

PASADENA, CA (Catholic Online) - Californians have been looking for water as that state endures a four-year-long drought. They've finally struck liquid gold, with one small hitch, it's on Mars.

Evidence of recent water flows on Mars has been conclusively found by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO). The MRO, which orbits takes photographs and measurements across the planet's surface, has found evidence that salt water flowed on the Martian surface as recently as the last Martian summer.

The initial evidence was uncovered in 2011 as photographs appeared to show active water erosion on the planet's surface. Since then, new techniques to analyze what chemicals are on the surface of the planet have allowed to scientists to detect traces of salt that can only form in water. The conclusion is that saltwater flows on the surface of Mars.

Water is especially tantalizing to scientists because it is regarded as a key medium for life to develop and evolve. All life, as we know it, requires liquid water. The discovery is also exciting because the presence of water at the surface means future astronauts could use Martian water supplies to replenish their water reserves and to create oxygen for breathing. Even rocket fuel could be created from the hydrogen in water. Such production would require the development of new, miniaturized technology to accomplish the task, but it is possible.

The discovery adds evidence to the contention that Mars was once covered with water, billions of years ago. That water is believed to have evaporated into space, a casualty of Mars' low gravity and low-pressure atmosphere.

Now that scientists can identify where water seems to flow at the planet's surface, they can now plan missions to survey those areas more extensively. They can also prepare experiments that will seek signs of life on the planet.

Discovering life on Mars would answer old questions about how common life could be in the universe. Is it a normal development, or is it rare?

Discovering water flowing on the planet will also guide future efforts to explore and possibly colonize the planet with people in the decades to come.

Scientists now have to determine how best to follow-up with their discovery. The first human expedition to Mars is tentatively scheduled for sometime in the 2030s.

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