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Life's Little Mysteries
Why Is Water So Essential for Life?
By Tia Ghose - Assistant Managing Editor over 5 years ago
Salty water streaks on Mars
These dark, narrow, 100 meter-long streaks (called recurring slope lineae) are flowing downhill on Mars, and are inferred to have been formed by contemporary flowing water. Recently, planetary scientists detected hydrated salts on these slopes at Hale crater, corroborating their original hypothesis that the streaks are indeed formed by liquid water. The blue color seen upslope of the dark streaks are thought not to be related to their formation, but instead are from the presence of the mineral pyroxene. (Image credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona)
Water. It's found everywhere on Earth, from the polar ice caps to steamy geysers. And wherever water flows on this planet, you can be sure to find life.
"When we find water here on Earth — whether it be ice-covered lakes, whether it be deep-sea hydrothermal vents, whether it be arid deserts — if there's any water, we've found microbes that have found a way to make a living there," said Brian Glazer, an oceanographer at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, who has studied astrobiology.
That's why NASA's motto in the hunt for extraterrestrial life has been "follow the water."
Yesterday (Sept. 28), NASA scientists announced they'd found it on Mars: Dark streaks that scientists have spotted seasonally for more than a decade in images of the Red Planet are evidence of flowing water, new research suggests. While the briny flows may be too full of chlorine-based salts to support life, they do raise the odds that Mars could have life right now, the researchers said.
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