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What has NASA discovered on Mars...?

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They are briefing the govt on the fact that they are extending the phoenix mission and need more cash to do it. Probably giving Bush a power point presentation with lots of MS Office clip art. I also heard they are bringing raw meat for Cheney. :D
 
Pshaw. Nonsense.

Everybody knows Cheney only drinks the blood of newborns.

That's ok.. everyone knows that Obama can just touch their corpses and bring them back to life, right?

Is there some sort of unwritten hippie law which demands that any news story about any topic must be commented on with ridiculous Bush bashing comments? Went over to slashdot to try and learn more about the subject and about every single comment was some incredibly stupid joke about Bush or republicans. Total waste of time.


Anyway..

It's suprising that NASA would feel the need to brief the white house unless it WAS something substantial. The "possibility" of life seems hardly worth going to the trouble for such a thing.

from the article: "Scientists are keen to point out however, that this secretive news will in no way indicate the existence of life (past or present) on Mars; Phoenix simply is not equipped make this discovery."
 
...It's suprising that NASA would feel the need to brief the white house unless it WAS something substantial. The "possibility" of life seems hardly worth going to the trouble for such a thing.

I was able to find and watch at least part of the July 31 press conference, and the Aviation Week reporter asked outright if the results of the META analysis was "provocative" or not, and whether the President's Science Advisor's Office had been briefed.

The response was that some of the "signatures" were interesting, but a lot more analysis was necessary.

In essence, they did not confirm this story, or deny it.

Here's a courtesy link to the original Aviation Week story, the source of the blog entry I posted to earlier:

White House Briefed on Potential for Mars Life

Puzzling. Of course, it could still turn out to be nothing.
 
Inevitably, the Bush bashing starts. Focus, people. The Bush Administraton is being briefed, but it is the OFFICE that is important here, not the occupant. This is the office of the head o government. It is a matter of protocol. This alone should have you sitting up straight. This is not done for routine matters. They didn't do this just because they discovered water (for like the 4th time), so it must be more important than that, something that involves policy issues, somethink like, oh, I dunno, the discovery of life on Mars, for example, probably microbes.

Protocol is a big deal. Have you ever gotten a government grant? Who gets to announce it? Not you. It's the local Congressman that gets to announce the prize as a press release from his office. You may think it is simply pork barrel politics in operation, but your viewpoint may be based on whether you are the recipient or the loser.

From most of our standpoints, life on Mars is a so-so no-brainer, but it is a milestone. For the Disclosure freaks, it's an addition to the conspiracy. Add the statements from the Vatican and commence freaking out. In any case, it has nothing to do with Bush, per se, and everything to do with something big. No doubt the conclusions will be controversial. Isn't everything? They'll say, 'the evidence suggests, but is not conclusive' and then some other group will say it's all bs and a mis-interpretation.

Should be interesting, anyway.
 
Is there some sort of unwritten hippie law which demands that any news story about any topic must be commented on with ridiculous Bush bashing comments?

If the Bush administration wasn't such an incomprehensible joke of a leadership it wouldn't be nearly as prevelant (or easy... or fun!).

That said, if they've discovered microbial life (whoopie-dee-doo) they would naturally brief the White House regardless of who was sitting in it. Gotta figure a way to gently break the news to the hear/see/speak no evil crowd in the bible belt...
 
Uncorroborated report that NASA has discovered something on Mars that is important enough to justify a White House briefing.

Apply a healthy grain of salt, could be nothing.

White House Briefing on Phoenix Discovery

I'm kind've puzzled about what it might be that would justify this kind've activity.This briefing intrigue's me what have they found and why it such a secret, Of course when you have water it can be a number of types solid, gaseous and liquid , As we also know now in science water can be the starting block for life so have Nasa found some type of life either frozen in the crust of Mars, life that is so important that the President needed to know or can be just simple microbes of life.And of course if it is only water they found Nasa must be asking it's self how much water is under the crust or slighty under the surface of this planet as we all know today as being mars, haveing lots of water of course helps create oxygen could this help nasa with it's plan for man mission to mars:question:
 
Exciting!
marspl1.jpg
 
OK now I have a combination of the Pirates of the Caribbean and the Beverly Hillbillies songs going through my head! Please stop.

When I was a little kid Granny from the beverly hillbillies used to scare me. I guess I didn't get the humor.
 
...report that NASA has discovered something on Mars that is important enough to justify a White House briefing.

It seems the exciting discovery on Mars is perchlorate.

NASA Phoenix discovers perchlorate

Not sure why this is so significant.

I've read speculation that it could make manned missions much easier.

NASA press conference to discuss tomorrow at 2pm EDT.

***

Interesting, the Phoenix Twitter feed denies a White House Briefing took place.
 
It seems the exciting discovery on Mars is perchlorate.

Not sure why this is so significant.

I'm guessing this (emphasis added):

"Perchlorates have been used as a medicine for more than 50 years to treat thyroid gland disorders. They are also used as an oxidizer in rocket fuel and can be found in airbags, fireworks, and Chilean fertilizers. Both potassium perchlorate (KClO<sub>4</sub>) and ammonium perchlorate (NH<sub>4</sub>ClO<sub>4</sub>) are used extensively within the pyrotechnics industry, whereas ammonium perchlorate is a component of solid rocket fuel. Lithium perchlorate, which decomposes exothermically to give oxygen, is used in oxygen "candles" on spacecraft, submarines and in other esoteric situations where a reliable backup or supplementary oxygen supply is needed."

Essentially it means manned missions to Mars just got 50% easier.
 
I'm guessing this (emphasis added):

"... Lithium perchlorate, which decomposes exothermically to give oxygen, is used in oxygen "candles" on spacecraft, submarines and in other esoteric situations where a reliable backup or supplementary oxygen supply is needed."

Essentially it means manned missions to Mars just got 50% easier.

It means we just have to turn on the Alien machine hidden under the Martian surface to generate a new atmosphere right before my eyes bug out from decompression.
 
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