Mars rover captures first close-up images of ridges that hint at planet's watery past in "really surprising" discovery
NASA's Curiosity rover has captured the first close-up images of a part of Mars that scientists say provide evidence of how water once flowed on the red planet.
There were once rivers, lakes and possibly an ocean on Mars, but they eventually dried up and the planet became the desert it is currently, according to NASA.
The new images by Curiosity show "dramatic evidence" of ancient groundwater in crisscrossing low ridges, arranged in "a boxwork pattern," stretching across miles of a mountain on Mars, the space agency said.
"The bedrock below these ridges likely formed when groundwater trickling through the rock left behind minerals that accumulated in those cracks and fissures, hardening and becoming cementlike," NASA said in a news release.
NASA's Curiosity rover took images of ridges that scientists think may have been formed by ancient groundwater.
NASA
The ridges look like spiderweb patterns from space and had previously only been observed from orbit, NASA said.
"A big mystery is why the ridges were hardened into these big patterns and why only here," Curiosity's project scientist, Ashwin Vasavada, said. "As we drive on, we'll be studying the ridges and mineral cements to make sure our idea of how they formed is on target."
The ridges have small fractures filled with calcium sulfate, left behind by groundwater, which had not been found before in this part of Mount Sharp, the 3-mile-tall mountain Curiosity is currently climbing, NASA said.
"That's really surprising," said Curiosity's deputy project scientist, Abigail Fraeman. "These calcium sulfate veins used to be everywhere, but they more or less disappeared as we climbed higher up Mount Sharp. The team is excited to figure out why they've returned now."
Curiosity landed in the planet's Gale Crater in 2012. It has been climbing the foothills of Mount Sharp since 2014, searching for signs of environments that could have supported life, according to NASA.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBS News
an hour ago
- CBS News
Maryland Zoo makes adjustments to ensure animals are safe in dangerous heat
The Maryland Zoo is making accommodations that will keep its animals safe and protected from this dangerous heatwave. Zookeepers are monitoring the animals, giving them extra water, spraying them off, and keeping them from the sun's powerful exposure. Special attention for hot days On Wednesday morning, the chimpanzees cooled off with icy fruits and vegetables. "Chimpanzees are very smart. They're going to know when they're getting a special treat," said Margaret Innes, the general curator with the Maryland Zoo. "They're going to recognize the keepers coming down with that, and they're going to make sure they're front of the queue to get whatever is being offered." But it's not just the chimpanzees getting the special treatment. Each animal gets monitored to make sure they are not overheated. "We do have keepers who are monitoring them very closely, and they try to make sure that the animals have what they need to make sure they stay cool," Innes said. Splashing away the heat Additionally, many of the animals have a choice to spend their day outside with extra water and shade, or inside in the air conditioning. Meanwhile, the African Elephants cool off with a spray shower. "It's like us going to the pool and enjoying it," said zookeeper Steven Schweiger. Schweiger says every time, 42-year-old Tuffy the Elephant chooses to stand under the shower. "In the wild, he would go to a mud wallow or a pool that would actually throw mud on him," Schweiger said. Acclimating to the weather While these extra ways to cool down certainly help, Innes says it's incredible the way Tuffy and most of the animals at the zoo can follow their instincts to adapt to the heat. The African penguins handle the intense heat better than you'd expect! And of course, the zookeepers are keeping an extra eye out for issues during the heat, but Innes says for the most part, the animals know how to take care of themselves. "Overall, animals, if they are healthy and don't have any issues that they're dealing with, can adapt and deal with the heat," Innes said. "And generally, if we give them the option, they will make good choices." WJZ was told the same protocols are made during extreme cold weather events so the animals at the zoo are safe, happy, and healthy year-round.
Medscape
an hour ago
- Medscape
Medscape 2050: Robert Langer
Medscape 2050: The Future of Medicine Smart cells, artificial hearts, microneedles, a brain on a chip: These are just a few of the advances in biomedical engineering that Robert Langer, ScD, director of the Langer Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), envisions in the future. Langer's work blends biotechnology and materials science, and he is known for developing pioneering tech in the areas of drug delivery, tissue engineering, and regenerative medicine. Langer finds inspiration in the natural world, from geckos' feet to porcupine quills, as well as what he calls just 'basic research,' pursuing the burning question of 'how things work' with a mind open to discovery. Dream big, Langer says. 'If you could make a kidney from scratch, you wouldn't have to do a kidney transplant.' Or a heart, for that matter. But there are other fascinating avenues of study that can impact disease. By 2050, smart materials might sense blood sugar levels in a diabetes patient. Smart cells might seek out cancer cells and destroy them. Pills could shoot out tiny needles to deliver drugs to the stomach or intestine. 'The value of AI,' Langer predicts, 'will be pervasive' in making these leaps forward, analyzing chemical structures and histology or collecting data from inside the body. But the goal is collaboration across a range of disciplines. Take 'artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, immunology, materials science and put them together,' Langer recommends. This is how we change patients' lives.
Geek Tyrant
an hour ago
- Geek Tyrant
Awsome and Massive STAR WARS Galaxy Map Is the Kind of Geeky Wonder That Reminds Us How Big This Universe Really Is — GeekTyrant
Star Wars universe can sometimes feel surprisingly small. Recent stories often narrow in on the same handful of planets and people. But now and then, something comes along that snaps us out of that tunnel vision, and today, it's a giant, updated map of the entire Star Wars galaxy. The official Star Wars website has just launched a freshly expanded semi-interactive galaxy map, building off the version originally crafted for the 2009 reference book Star Wars: The Essential Atlas. This latest iteration includes locations from recent canon like Andor 's Narkina 5, The Bad Batch 's Pabu, and even reaches into the deeper corners of lore with planets from Timothy Zahn's Thrawn novels and the mysterious Chiss Ascendancy. It comes with a full index of star systems, each labeled with its grid coordinate, sector, and region. For fans of tabletop RPGs, worldbuilders, fanfic writers, or just obsessive timeline checkers, it's a goldmine. As the official site puts it: 'The Star Wars galaxy contains billions of stars and is home to trillions of beings living on millions of worlds governed over millennia of galactic history by the Republic, the Empire and the New Republic. It's the setting for countless stories of good and evil, chronicled in Star Wars movies, TV shows, video games, books, comics and more.' The site also encourages fans to explore and return: 'This page, originally created as an online companion for the 2009 reference book Star Wars: The Essential Atlas, collects key maps and documents of interest to students of galactic cartography. Bookmark it and check back for updates from the galaxy far, far away!' There's something kind of hypnotic about just staring at the whole thing zoomed out. All those hyperspace lanes crisscrossing, sectors bordering other sectors, planet names floating in every direction, it reminds you that this galaxy is a galaxy. Tatooine, way out on the edge, really is as far from the Deep Core as Luke said it felt. It also reframes some of the emotional weight behind the stories. Think about Nemik's manifesto from Andor . That little rebel's words, scribbled on the edge of nowhere, somehow reached Coruscant, Yavin IV, and the furthest systems. It even deepens how we understand the Force. The idea that it connects all living things becomes literal when you look at this map and imagine every pinprick of light representing a world full of life, all bound together in that invisible energy field. Sometimes, it takes something as geeky and seemingly simple as a map to remind you why Star Wars works. It's not just the characters or the space battles, it's the sheer scale of it all. The freedom to tell any kind of story, in any corner of an impossibly big universe. This map is a tool. But it's also a reminder of what makes Star Wars so special. You can check it out for yourself on the official Star Wars site and start planning your own galactic journey, or just get lost in the possibilities.
