Latest news with #extraterrestrialLife
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Mars rover captures first close-up photos of giant 'spiderwebs' on the Red Planet
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. NASA's Curiosity Mars rover has taken the first ever close-up images of gigantic Martian "spiderwebs" on the Red Planet. The zig-zagging ridges, which were left behind by ancient groundwater, could reveal more about Mars' watery past and provide clues about whether the planet once harbored extraterrestrial life, researchers say. The web-like features, known as "boxwork," are made up of criss-crossing ridges of mineral-rich rocks that infrequently litter the surface of Mars. The patterns can span up to 12 miles (20 kilometers) across and look as if they have been spun by giant arachnids when viewed from space. Yet, until now, these structures have never been studied up close. Smaller boxwork formations are found on the walls of caves on Earth and form via a similar mechanism to stalagmites and stalactites. Scientists have suggested the same mechanism created these structures on Mars, only on a much larger scale. "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 representatives wrote in a statement. "Eons of sandblasting by Martian wind wore away the rock but not the minerals, revealing networks of resistant ridges within." The web-like features should not be confused with the infamous "spiders on Mars" — a geological feature created by carbon dioxide ice on the planet's surface, which was recently recreated on Earth for the first time. Related: 32 things on Mars that look like they shouldn't be there Curiosity is currently exploring a patch of boxwork on the slopes of the 3.4-mile-tall (5.5 kilometers) Mount Sharp at the heart of Gale Crater, where the wandering robot touched down in 2012. The rover set out for the area in November 2024 and arrived earlier this month. The features are a priority target for mission scientists because the ridges do not appear anywhere else on the mountain — and experts have no idea why. On June 23, NASA released the first close-up images of the faux spiderwebs, along with an interactive video on their YouTube channel (see below), which enables you to explore the site in 3D. The rover also drilled and analyzed some samples of rocks surrounding the web-like ridges and found that they contained veins of calcium sulfate, a salty mineral that is also left behind by groundwater. This particular mineral hasn't been seen so far up Mount Sharp before, so its discovery here is "really surprising," Abigail Fraeman, Curiosity's deputy project scientist based at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, said in the statement. Researchers hope that by studying boxwork up close, they can learn more about Mars' watery past, before the planet's oceans were stripped away by solar radiation. Future findings could also shed light on the giant subsurface ocean that was recently discovered deep below the Martian crust. RELATED STORIES —Lights on Mars! NASA rover photographs visible auroras on Red Planet for the first time —Mars cozies up to one of the brightest stars in the sky in 'mind-blowing' conjunction photo —NASA spots Martian volcano twice the height of Mount Everest bursting through the morning clouds Some experts also think that the ridges could finally help settle the debate around whether Mars once harbored extraterrestrial life. "These ridges will include minerals that crystallized underground, where it would have been warmer, with salty liquid water flowing through," Kirsten Siebach, a Curiosity mission scientist at Rice University in Houston who has been studying the area, previously said. "Early Earth microbes could have survived in a similar environment. That makes this an exciting place to explore."
Arab News
12-06-2025
- Science
- Arab News
Book Review: ‘Brief Answers to the Big Questions'
Stephen Hawking's 'Brief Answers to the Big Questions' is a fascinating and thought-provoking exploration of science's most profound mysteries, offering insights into the origins of the universe and humanity's place within it. Published in 2018, this final work by the renowned physicist combines complex scientific ideas with accessible explanations, making it a must-read for anyone curious about the cosmos. Hawking begins by addressing how the universe came into existence. He explains that the laws of physics are sufficient to describe the universe's origins, suggesting that it could arise from a state of nothingness due to the balance of positive and negative energy. By linking this to the nature of time, which began alongside the universe itself, he offers a perspective grounded in scientific reasoning. The book also delves into the evolution of the universe and the evidence supporting it. Hawking discusses how the redshift of light from distant galaxies confirms the universe's expansion, while the cosmic microwave background radiation provides a glimpse into its dense, hot beginnings. Through the anthropic principle, he demonstrates how the unique conditions of our universe make life possible, underscoring how rare such conditions are. Hawking also considers the possibility of extraterrestrial life, suggesting that while life may exist elsewhere, intelligent civilizations are unlikely to be nearby or at the same stage of development. He cautions against attempts to communicate with alien life, warning that such interactions could pose risks to humanity. One of the book's most intriguing sections explores black holes. Hawking examines their immense density, the singularity at their core, and the paradox of information loss. He explains how black holes might release information as they evaporate, preserving the fundamental laws of physics. Beyond its scientific insights, the book is a call to action. Hawking urges readers to prioritize scientific progress, safeguard the planet, and prepare for the challenges of the future. Though some sections may challenge non-experts, 'Brief Answers to the Big Questions' remains accessible, inspiring, and deeply insightful — a fitting conclusion to Hawking's extraordinary legacy.
The Independent
11-06-2025
- Science
- The Independent
How bubble-blowing whales could aid the hunt for aliens
Humpback whales have been observed creating bubble rings during friendly interactions with humans, suggesting a possible form of communication. Researchers analysed 12 incidents involving 11 whales and 39 bubble rings, categorising the whales by age and noting their non-aggressive behaviour. The whales often exhibited inquisitive behaviour towards boats and swimmers, blowing bubble rings in their direction. In most cases, the ring-blowing whale was alone, suggesting the intended recipient was not another whale. Scientists believe studying these whale interactions could provide insights into non-human intelligence and help refine methods for detecting extraterrestrial life.
The Independent
29-05-2025
- General
- The Independent
The truth is out there? Why the scientific community struggles to accept ‘proof' of alien life
The search for extraterrestrial life has long gone back and forth between scientific curiosity, public fascination and outright scepticism. Recently, scientists claimed the 'strongest evidence' of life on a distant exoplanet – a world outside our solar system. Grandiose headlines often promise proof that we are not alone, but scientists remain cautious. Is this caution unique to the field of astrobiology? In truth, major scientific breakthroughs are rarely accepted quickly. Newton's laws of motion and gravity, Wegener's theory of plate tectonics, and human-made climate change all faced prolonged scrutiny before achieving consensus. But does the nature of the search for extraterrestrial life mean that extraordinary claims require even more extraordinary evidence? We've seen groundbreaking evidence in this search beforehand, from claims of biosignatures (potential signs of life) in Venus's atmosphere to Nasa rovers finding 'leopard spots' – a potential sign of past microbial activity – in a Martian rock. Both stories generated a public buzz around the idea that we might be one step closer to finding alien life. But on further inspection, abiotic (non-biological) processes or false detection became more likely explanations. In the case of the exoplanet, K2-18 b, scientists working with data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) announced the detection of gases in the planet's atmosphere – methane, carbon dioxide, and more importantly, two compounds called dimethyl sulphide (DMS) and dimethyl disulphide (DMDS). As far as we know, on Earth, DMS/DMDS are produced exclusively by living organisms. Their presence, if accurately confirmed in abundance, would suggest microbial life. The researchers even suggest there's a 99.4% probability that the detection of these compounds wasn't a fluke – a figure that, with repeat observations, could reach the gold standard for statistical certainty in the sciences. This is a figure known as five sigma, which equates to about a one in a million chance that the findings are a fluke. So why hasn't the scientific community declared this the discovery of alien life? The answer lies in the difference between detection and attribution, and in the nature of evidence itself. JWST doesn't directly 'see' molecules. Instead, it measures the way that light passes through or bounces off a planet's atmosphere. Different molecules absorb light in different ways, and by analysing these absorption patterns – called spectra – scientists infer what chemicals are likely to be present. This is an impressive and sophisticated method – but also an imperfect one. It relies on complex models that assume we understand the biological reactions and atmospheric conditions of a planet 120 light years away. The spectra suggesting the existence of DMS/DMDS may be detected because you cannot explain the spectrum without the molecule you've predicted, but it could also result from an undiscovered or misunderstood molecule instead. Climate comparison Given how momentous the conclusive discovery of extraterrestrial life would be, these assumptions mean that many scientists err on the side of caution. But is this the same for other kinds of science? Let's compare with another scientific breakthrough: the detection and attribution of human-made climate change. The relationship between temperature and increases in CO₂ was first observed by the Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenius in 1927. It was only taken seriously once we began to routinely measure temperature increases. But our atmosphere has many processes that feed CO₂ in and out, many of which are natural. So the relationship between atmospheric CO₂ and temperature may have been validated, but the attribution still needed to follow. Carbon has three so-called flavours, known as isotopes. One of these isotopes, carbon-14, is radioactive and decays slowly. When scientists observed an increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide but a low volume of carbon-14, they could deduce that the carbon was very old – too old to have any carbon-14. Fossil fuels – coal, oil and natural gas – are composed of ancient carbon and thus are devoid of carbon-14. So the attribution of anthropogenic climate change was proven beyond reasonable doubt, with 97% acceptance among scientists. In the search for extraterrestrial life, much like climate change, there is a detection and attribution phase, which requires the robust testing of hypotheses and also rigorous scrutiny. In the case of climate change, we had in situ observations from many sources. This means roughly that we could observe these sources close up. The search for extraterrestrial life relies on repeated observations from the same sensors that are far away. In such situations, systematic errors are more costly. Further to this, both the chemistry of atmospheric climate change and fossil fuel emissions were validated with atmospheric tests under lab conditions from 1927 onwards. Much of the data we see touted as evidence for extraterrestrial life comes from light years away, via one instrument, and without any in situ samples. The search for extraterrestrial life is not held to a higher standard of scientific rigour, but it is constrained by an inability to independently detect and attribute multiple lines of evidence. For now, the claims about K2-18 b remain compelling but inconclusive. That doesn't mean we aren't making progress. Each new observation adds to a growing body of knowledge about the universe and our place in it. The search continues – not because we're too cautious, but because we are rightly so. Oliver Swainston is a Research Assistant at RAND Europe. Chris Carter is an Analyst on the Science and Emerging Technology Team at RAND Europe.
