Announcement Of 'Major Science Finding' About Mars Fuels Speculation
WASHINGTON (CBSNewYork/CBS SF) -- NASA reported in a dramatic posting on its website Sunday that it will soon announce that a mystery about Mars has been solved.
The announcement said there has been "a major science finding from the agency's ongoing exploration of Mars," and NASA will announce details at a Monday morning news conference at its Washington, D.C. headquarters.
Announcement Of 'Major Science Finding' About Mars Fuels Speculation
No other details were released. But as 1010 WINS' Gary Baumgarten reported, the finding is causing for speculation by scientists and others who are having fun with the idea.
Some wondered if NASA might have found a life form – although of course, no one believes it will be little green men.
Others still, with a nod to the big screen, joked that NASA may have discovered an astronaut left for dead.
"I think they found Matt Damon up there," one man joked in New York.
Others said more likely, the discovery was flowing water, which would be a major development in scientific terms.
In its multi-year trek across Gale Crater on Mars, the Curiosity rover has found rocks that contained a surprising amount of moisture directly under the surface along with sedimentary evidence the crater was filled with water eons ago, CBS San Francisco noted.
Earlier this month, researchers said they have discovered a giant slab of ice buried below the surface of a region called the Arcadia Planitia in Mars' middle latitudes, CBS San Francisco reported.
With this in mind, consider that one of the scientists slated to speak at Monday's press event is Lujendra Ojha, from the Georgia Institute of Technology . Ojha first put forth the possibility that very salty water (which freezes at a lower temperature) could flow on the planet's frigid surface during warmer months, CBS San Francisco reported.
Monday's event is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. and will be broadcast live on NASA Television and the agency's website . The event will also be carried live on: http://www.ustream.tv/NASAJPL.
Members of the public will be able to post questions during via Twitter using the hashtag #AskNASA.
