Sending rockets to Mars and elsewhere

[rov1200]

With this latest finding that amino acids have been detected in a comet's tail can we learn anything by looking for life on Mars, etc? We can assume through the course of time some comets would have depositied amino acids on every planet it came into contact with. eg if Mars Rover had detected amino acids on the surface of Mars we could have assumed life was there.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8208307.st m

[sp1214]

The exploration of Mars has resulted in many c?ckups. The British satelite was lost after spending months getting there. Then a US rocket crash landed because the boffins calculated the trajectory and landing in Metric instead of other units.

So it would not surprise me that DNA data would be announced as coming from Mars only to find out it was contamination from a passing comet.

[jake-the-peg]

No there is a huge difference between detecting amino acids and concluding that means the presence of life.

Amino acids like glycene are really very simple compounds which just so happen to be the building blocks of life. They can be created very easily in all sorts of environments.

For example in a famous experiment http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miller%E2%80%93Ur ey_experiment an electric spark was passed through all the ingredients thought to be present in the Early Earth for a week

22 seperate amino acids were formed.

So this really isn't all that surprising

[Cheeris]

It's worth pointing out here that the way science news is reported in the general media is pretty misleading, often deliberately so (although the Beeb is pretty good).

For example, a Mars probe returns data that is incontrovertible evidence that a particular amino acid exists in the regolith ('soil') of Mars.

The science team involved publish a paper / make an announcement to this effect, probably with some sort of footnote or comment for public consumption that this amino acid is present in Earth lifeforms. (This raises the profile of their project and helps guarantee funding).

The media groups report this as 'CHEMICAL OF LIFE FOUND ON MARS' or something similar. i.e. by making the story more acceptable for public consumption they twist the conclusions of the actual scientific findings way beyond what can reasonably stated.

Something to remember the next time a scientific story is reported in the media (particular those people who are always going on about how 'scientists can never make up their mind' etc.)

[rov1200]

Yes I agree about media publishing. Not a day seems to go by when they report scientists have found a cure for cancer. The gullible public accept this and find later people are still dying in their thousands of the disease. Like you say it will ensure funding for another few years.

[rov1200]

The fact that we are able to produce 22 amino acids in the lab obviously proves that the existance of them in comets or any other space objects should be treated as no surprise as you say. Unfortunately it does not create an argument for evolutionists.

Broaching into another area it is this cocktail of chemicals that could only produce life by a chemical designer as its far to complex to have happened by accident.

[rov1200]

Just a post thought Jake. To create an amino acid on Earth requires a pseudo lightning initiation. But lightning is confined to the Earth and its atmosphere. So to have an amino acid created in comets or elsewhere would need a similar trigger?

[Cheeris]

"Yes I agree about media publishing. Not a day seems to go by when they report scientists have found a cure for cancer. The gullible public accept this and find later people are still dying in their thousands of the disease. Like you say it will ensure funding for another few years."


That's seems to be pretty much the opposite of what I said.

[jake-the-peg]

Amino acids were create and lightning simulation was part of this.

That does not imply that lightning is necessary.

Lightning is also not confined to Earth

Jupiter
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/1 0/071009-jupiter-lightning.html

Mars
http://www.physorg.com/news164468762.html

[rov1200]

Thanks for that info Jake. When it comes to Mars the first lightning strike was only noticed just 2 months ago. Very topical!

[rov1200]

Cheeris if I have misquoted you ignore it. That posting however does echo my own thoughts about funding.