Opportunity Spots Curious Object On Mars

[indigobusiness]

Opportunity Spots Curious Object On Mars

By Leonard David
Senior Science Writer
posted: 13 January 2005
12:08 pm ET


NASA’s Opportunity Mars rover has come across an interesting object -- perhaps a meteorite sitting out in the open at Meridiani Planum. Initial data taken by the robot’s Mini-Thermal Emission Spectrometer (Mini-TES) is suggestive that the odd-looking “rock” is made of metal.

The curious-looking object stands out in the parking-lot like landscape of Meridiani Planum.

“We're curious about it too. We have Mini-TES data on it now, and they suggest that it may actually be made of metal,” said Steve Squyres, lead scientist on the Mars Exploration Rover mission from Cornell University.

“So we are beginning to suspect that it may be a meteorite. I stress that this is very preliminary!”, Squyres told SPACE.com.

Opportunity has been busy at work inspecting entry debris -- hardware that fell to Mars during the robot’s entry, descent, and landing over a year ago

snip




http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/mars_object_050113.html

[indigobusiness]

1. Looks like lumber.

Just kidding.

[Rincewind]

2. obvious

It's Spock's brain.

[Jackpine Radical]

3. It's Rush's brain.

You can see the holes burned into the cortex by the drugs.

[HeeBGBz]

4. Um, its a rock

Or a wadded up piece of some previously failed Mars mission litter.

[indigobusiness]

5. No, it's a metallic meteorite

obviously.

It looks like a nugget.

[HeeBGBz]

7. A big gold nugget

Or some new most precious metal to incite desire and envy.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

6. Obviously a sea shell.... FDA = Fatal Drugs Allowed EOM

[htuttle]

8. If it 's a meteorite, it must have fallen quite some time ago, then buried

and then uncovered.

If a meteorite that large fell to earth (or rather, it reached the surface while still that large), it would put a pretty big hole in the ground. On Mars, with it's much thinner atmosphere, the crater from something that large (and metal) would have to have been pretty big. So I'm thinking it must be fairly old, buried, and then uncovered, because there doesn't seem to be any trace of an impact crater.

[indigobusiness]

9. It could've skipped and rolled to a stop.

If it came in on a low trajectory.

[slutticus]

10. Maybe it's a meteorite from earth.

That would be interesting.

[Dead_Parrot]

11. Does it have "Made in Britain" on the back?

Hey, I'm a Brit. I'm allowed to make Beagle jokes.

[indigobusiness]

12. "That parrot...

is no more."

[SaveElmer]

13. Confirmed as a Meteorite today...

Mystery solved!!

http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/space/01/19/mars.rover.ap/index.html