Unintentional, Viking Missions Have Burned Samples of Life on Mars

Trials to search for evidence of life on Mars have been started since 1976. At that time two twin spacecraft named Viking slid smoothly to the surface of Mars.

They flew together, separated, and took three Martian land samples. This sample will be studied to check for possible signs of life there.

However, at that time researchers did not find any organisms. Though they expect Mars there should be signs of that life. Because the planet has a carbon composition similar to a comet or meteorite and researchers found the organisms in the two celestial bodies.

Based on research published in the Journal of Geophysical Research, Viking is estimated to have accidentally burned the sample. The journal, published June 20, is focused on tracking the Viking program.

At that time the space shuttle successfully landed on the surface of Mars. These planes are designed to analyze the Red Planet’s soil and discover the remaining organisms.

The rest of the organism could show that there was once life on Mars. So when these landing missions return to Earth, they deliver data showing that Mars has no evidence of organic life.

Later, further missions to Mars did show that there are organic molecules there. But supposedly, this data already exists when the Viking project is done if they accidentally bake samples of soil brought to Earth for analysis.

The same soil sample, perchlorate in the form of the flammable salt, was recovered in 2008 by the Phoenix spacecraft. Proof of the same material decades later after the Viking mission.

Furthermore, in 2014, the Mars Curiosity mission finds other organic molecules on Mars from the chlorobenzene material. This molecule is formed from when carbon materials burn with perchlorate, as written by Tech Times.

Researchers then did find the presence of organic molecules. Nevertheless, researchers still can not conclude whether there really was ever life on the planet.

For, it is possible that these organic molecules are formed by natural processes without ever evidence of a greater life on Mars. This is what makes no one who dares to declare that there has been a life on Mars, as quoted from BGR.

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