Gizmorama - October 2, 2013

Good Morning,

U.S. researchers said that the first soil samples taken by NASA's Mars rover Curiosity show a high percentage of water. So does that mean that the martians could of had a water park on the red planet? Okay, all kidding aside this is an amazing discovery.

Learn about this and other interesting stories from the scientific community in today's issue.

Until Next Time,
Erin

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*-- Thousands of dinosaur tracks found along Yukon River in Alaska --*
FAIRBANKS, Alaska - Thousands of dinosaur tracks found in a remote area on the Yukon River are "evidence of an extinct ecosystem," University of Alaska researchers say. The tracks were discovered by a team from the university's Museum of the North in Fairbanks after a 500-mile boat trip, the university said last week. Earth Sciences Curator Pat Druckenmiller said the tracks were left by a diverse group of dinosaurs, both carnivores and herbivores. "We found a great diversity of dinosaur types, evidence of an extinct ecosystem we never knew existed," Druckenmiller said. Paul McCarthy of the department of geology and geophysics said he has seen dinosaur footprints elsewhere in Alaska. But those were not as numerous. "We found dinosaur footprints by the scores on literally every outcrop we stopped at," he said. McCarthy said the tracks in the Yukon are probably 25 million to 30 million years older than those in Denali National Park, hundreds of miles to the south. The species that have been identified are also different from earlier finds in Alaska.


*-- Curiosity analysis shows Mars soil sample 2 percent water --*
TROY, N.Y. - An analysis of one of the first soil samples taken by NASA's Mars rover Curiosity found a high percentage of water, U.S. researchers said. "One of the most exciting results from this very first solid sample ingested by Curiosity is the high percentage of water in the soil," said Laurie Leshin, dean of Science at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York and lead author of one study focusing on analyzing the rover's samples. "About 2 percent of the soil on the surface of Mars is made up of water, which is a great resource, and interesting scientifically," Leshin said in a release issued by RPI. In the study, scientists used the Rover's scoop to collect dust, dirt, and finely grained soil and fed portions of it into Curiosity's instrument, Sample Analysis at Mars. Inside SAM, the dust, dirt, and fine soil were heated to 835 degrees Celsius. The sample also released significant carbon dioxide, oxygen, and sulfur compounds when heated, researchers said. Leshin said the sample was the first analyzed with the instruments on Curiosity. "This is the first solid sample that we've analyzed with the instruments on Curiosity. It's the very first scoop of stuff that's been fed into the analytical suite. Although this is only the beginning of the story, what we've learned is substantial," said Leshin, who co-wrote "Volatile, Isotope and Organic Analysis of Martian Fines with the Mars Curiosity Rover." Thirty-four researchers, all members of the Mars Science Laboratory Science Team, contributed to the paper published in the journal Science. "We now know there should be abundant, easily accessible water on Mars," Leshin said. "When we send people, they could scoop up the soil anywhere on the surface, heat it just a bit, and obtain water."

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