Sciences >
Astronomy
Get a Widget for this title
RSS FeedMars methane: Geology or biology?
Results so far:
| Geology | 56% | 76 votes | Total: 136 votes | |
| Biology | 44% | 60 votes |
Geology
Write now
Print
Invite a writer™
Add to FavoritesGrowing up, I used to call Mars the "Angry Planet," due to the sharp resemblance between our neighboring planet and that of a reddened face of an angry cartoon character. It was for small reasons like this that I became obsessed with astronomy, learning about the planets and the latest incredible phenomenon.
Every day I would conduct research and discover that my knowledge of what is out there is so limited that it discouraged me! "When will I understand it all!" My parents tried to tell me that there will always be new things to discover in the Universe, but that is a lesson that I have yet to learn.
Everyday, more and more information comes my way, delighting my starved mind in ways that my stomach never felt with its food. Watching the History Channel, Discovery and the NASA Channel in hopes that something I have yet to hear would strike my ears. Then, one day, I got my wish!
Methane... on the Moon! These little rivers of light on the surface of the Moon, shifting here and there, never really staying in one place. The color matches the spectrum of methane, for sure, but how did it get there? This was the very mind candy I had been craving! So, I pulled out my notebook and my favorite "thinking pen" and jotted down some of my ideas before I started researching, just to see if I could piece it together.
We know the Moon was geologically active. We know that the Moon came from the Earth. We know the Earth has Methane under its surface from when the oceans were completely made of Methane. We know that the Moon has not had water on the surface. The Methane that came from under the Moon's surface must have carried over from when it was taken from the Earth!"
Later I conducted some research and found that my answer was one of the most widely held possibilities!
*
Now, in relation to Mars: We know that Mars has had water flow in the distant past. We know that the canals speak volumes as to how much water existed on the surface. We know that Mars has a thin atmosphere, creating an incredible visualization of what is on the surface, offering us no tangible proof that intelligent life exists there. We know that the Earth formed methane before it produced water. We know that Mars is right next door to us, suffering the same conditions while Earth was formed.
The only logical step would be to believe that this methane is coming from deep under the surface, just as the methane on the Earth is being released. Methane coming from another life form is very possible, but not probable. We know that Mars was a lot like Earth at one point. If this is true, then Mars would have methane deep under its surface, right along with a possible reservoir of fresh water, as well. And, who knows... the last remaining remnants of intelligent life may great us when we go to find out.
Learn more about this author, David Snyder.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.
Biology
Methane has been found on Mars. Now the debate begins, is it biological or geological in nature? Maybe one day we will know for sure but now we take sides and present our cases. Scientists will throw out pros and cons on both sides. Religious authorities may get involved, possibly on both sides. Conspiracy theorists will claim cover ups. Black helicopters will be buzzing over area 51 and the face on Mars will wink at us through telescopes. I could do research and put up an argument for biology or geology. I'm not going to though. I'm just going to say that in my opinion it is biology. It's proof that their was at one time life on Mars. Maybe there still is life there. I know that there was life on Mars.
Many of you may be wondering if I am wearing a tin foil helmet and about to claim I was abducted. Not quite. I'm not going to go so far as to claim that I am normal but I do manage to fit into society somewhat. I believe that somewhere in this big wide Universe life exists. Have they ever visited earth? I really can't see why an advanced race would show in interest in us other than as a galactic soap opera and if they aren't as advanced as us, how would they get here? Not only that how do they manage to go undetected by everyone except those who think that Elvis is still alive and shacking up with Bigfoot on Mt McKinley.
No I wont go so far as to say that aliens have visited us, but I will firmly state that I believe there was life on mars. Here's my reason why. I want to believe. When I was a child it was easy to believe. Science was expanding our knowledge in leaps and bounds. Two years after I was born, man landed on the moon. The Universe seemed to be within reach. Plans were made to land on Mars. I grew up with the Space Shuttles. We would have colonies on the moon in our life time. Sky Lab would grow into a giant multinational space station where astronauts from all countries would live and work in peace. I grew up with Star Trek and Star Wars. One day I might actually step out of a space craft onto a alien world. I might shake hands with an ambassador from another galaxy.
Then it started to go wrong. The Space Shuttle disaster made us all realize just how far away space was and how vulnerable we were in the face of the galaxy. Suddenly for my generation the cost of going to space got a lot higher. Shuttle flights were halted and spending for NASA was drastically cut back. Then one day reality made a house call and space became an unattainable dream.
It really wasn't that much, just an article in a scientific magazine. An article about colonization of space. I can't remember all the details or who wrote the article, but I remember that line. The author stated that there was a real possibility that Titan could be colonized by 2100. Wow we could colonize another plant ( actually a moon) by 2100. Then I realized that by 2100 I would long be in my grave. Maybe that was the first time I ever thought about my own mortality, I'm not sure but I remember that pain I felt. I would never leave the solar system. I would never help colonize another planet. My only chance to meet an alien life form seemed to involve anal probes. I was devastated. This planet was all that I had and at times it can be a cruel place. There would be no escape to the stars for me.
I don't dream about going to the stars anymore. With conditions here on Earth we may never again as a species set foot on the moon. Maybe we aren't headed at high speed to a nuclear meltdown but we still seem eager to destroy ourselves. Maybe it's best we don't reach the stars and infect it with our madness. Still, I find myself looking up into the night sky and hoping. Hoping that there is someone out there. Hoping they will let themselves be known. Hoping the stories about anal probes aren't real.
That s why when I hear that there is methane on Mars I celebrate just a little bit. When they tell me there was once water on Mars I smile. I know there is life in the Universe. I know we aren't alone. I know that at one time people walked on the red planet and looked up at the same sky from a slightly different angle. Maybe they looked at this strange blue planet and wondered if there was life on it. It has to be true. I have to believe. Come on, God give me just this one thing.
Learn more about this author, Allen Alberson.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.
Difference of opinion? Debate now.
