Martian

7 Stories

Study: Buried Martian Lake Is Surrounded by Ponds

Find raises possibility of tiny, swimming Martians

(Newser) - A network of salty ponds may be gurgling beneath Mars’ South Pole alongside a large underground lake, raising the prospect of tiny, swimming Martian life. Italian scientists reported their findings Monday, two years after identifying what they believed to be a large buried lake . They widened their coverage area by...

Curiosity Makes Weird Weather Find on Red Planet

Warm days could point to possibility of life there

(Newser) - The Mars rover Curiosity has enjoyed surprisingly warm weather lately, a find that could arouse more speculation about the possibility of life on the Red Planet, Space.com reports. In this case, warm means up to 43 Fahrenheit—which is unexpected because it's still winter at the Gale Center,...

On NASA's Mars Menu: Thai Pizza, Martian Veggies

Astronauts on the 3-year mission could grow some of their own produce

(Newser) - Here's a real head scratcher: How do you feed a crew of six to eight astronauts on a mission to Mars that will last almost three years? It's a question NASA is working at already, even though the mission won't happen for at least another 10 to...

World's Hardiest Creatures Survive 'Martian Soil'

Researchers seek to keep Earth stowaways away from Mars

(Newser) - A tiny but incredibly tough creature called the tardigrade has been identified as the Earth-dweller most likely to hitch a ride to Mars and survive once there—indicating that our methods for sterilizing Mars rovers may not be up to snuff. The millimeter-long creature, also known as the water bear,...

Museum Puts 'Martian Colony' on Display

Alien microbacteria found on meteorite

(Newser) - A London museum that unwittingly hosted a fossilized colony of Martians for decades has put the alien life on display. NASA scientists who recently examined the Natural History Museum's fragment of the Nakhla meteorite believe bumps on its surface are fossilized Martian microbacteria, the Telegraph reports. The meteorite crashed into...

UFO Watchers Abuzz Over Mars 'Skull'

(Newser) - UFO watchers are speculating online that a NASA image of a Martian landscape may show an alien skull, reports the Telegraph. "There appears to be a narrow pointed small mouth, so this creature most likely is a carnivore," noted one. An image that looked surprisingly like a skull...

Scientists Hatch Round-Trip Mission to Mars

Unmanned spacecraft would bring back rocks and possibly microscopic life

(Newser) - Before scientists can put a man on Mars, they first need to figure out how to get a mission back to Earth, reports the Guardian. An international team is doing just that—developing an $8 billion mission to travel to Mars and return with rock samples and possibly microscopic life....

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