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Professor Plays Vital Role In Mars Water Breakthrough
Pasadena CA (SPX) Aug 11, 2008 NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander has recently confirmed what space scientists have suspected for a long time: There is water on Mars. UT Dallas Physics Professor John Hoffman, a member of the William B. Hanson Center for Space Sciences, is at the center of the discovery. Hoffman's mass spectrometer is the system that analyzed gases from soil samples, the step needed to prove the existence of water. The Lander's robotic arm has been digging in a number of places within reach of the stationary lander. The sites of interest have been given Disney character names, like "Mama Bear, Baby Bear, Goldilocks, and Snow White trench." To make the analysis, soil samples from a trench 2 inches deep were heated in furnaces aboard the Phoenix Mars Lander. A number of measurements showed the presence of water in the sample as it was heated from -10 C up past the melting point of ice (0 degrees C). The measurements that determined the presence of water included the: + Energy input to the oven that was required to melt the ice. + Increase of gas pressure in the oven as the ice turned into water vapor. + Readings from Hoffman's spectrometer. "I am very pleased that we were able to identify the ice as actually being frozen water," Hoffman said. "I'm also looking forward to other discoveries that we might make in the surface materials of Mars." The Phoenix Lander's reliability and longevity, not to mention its recent discovery of water, prompted NASA to extend the Lander's mission by five weeks. The original mission, slated for 90 days, was set to end in late August. Community Email This Article Comment On This Article Share This Article With Planet Earth
Related Links UT Dallas Mars News and Information at MarsDaily.com Lunar Dreams and more
ROTOZIP Duracut Bit Helps Phoenix Collect Martian Soil Samples
Mt. Prospect IL (SPX) Aug 11, 2008The ROTOZIP Duracut Zip Bit, paired with a high-speed rasp, has enabled NASA's Phoenix Lander to collect valuable soil samples. NASA scientists confirmed the ROTOZIP-enabled rasp is the first tool in history to successfully cut into the permafrost surface of another planet and acquire a sample for analysis. |
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