Phoenix Mars Lander: Looking for Life as We Know it

"Mars Microbes Could Survive with Natural Antifreeze "
Space.com (June 12, 2008)

"More than 30 years ago, NASA's Viking life-detection experiments on Mars returned inconclusive results, and controversy surrounds the Viking data to this day.

"The Phoenix mission now on Mars may collect data that will help answer questions raised by Viking, but to do so researchers will need to be able to spot the difference between chemical and biological signatures on Mars...."

I'm glad to see that the 'peculiar chemistry' explanation for those odd Viking experiment results is still getting discussed. It could be that the Martial soil at the Viking site does react oddly to the nutrient broth it was given.

On the other hand, while looking for 'life as we know it,' it's a good idea to remember that we're talking about Mars, not a remote island on Earth. And, Phoenix scientists seem to be doing so.

I don't get the adolescent thrill over space exploration that I did four decades ago, but it's still a fascinating frontier.

---

Related posts, at

• "A Serious Search for Other Worlds, Life, and - Maybe - Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence"