Rovers are forbidden from visiting parts of Mars. Here's why
Meteorologist/Science Writer
Wednesday, September 30, 2015, 5:00 PM - Space satellites probe Hurricane Joaquin, Dawn delivers a colourful look at dwarf planet Ceres, and why rovers are forbidden to visit some regions of Mars. It's What's Up In Space!
NASA scans Hurricane Joaquin from space
Sending rovers to Mars and spacecraft to Pluto is an important part of NASA's contribution to science, however they also perform a vital service here on the homeworld, monitoring and tracking potentially destructive storms from space. The latest storm to come under the scrutiny of orbiting satellites is Hurricane Joaquin, which was observed by two of NASA's fleet - the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) satellite and the Aqua satellite.
The swirling view of the storm revealed in the video above was gathered by the GPM satellite as it flew over on September 29, 2015.
According to NASA:
GPM showed a large area of very intense rain with rain rates ranging from around 50 to 132 mm/hour (~2 to 5 inches) just to the right of the center. This is a strong indication that large amounts of heat are being released into the storm's center, fueling its circulation and providing the means for its intensification. A 3-D view of Joaquin was created at NASA Goddard using GPM's DPR space-borne radar. Associated with the area of intense rain is an area of tall convective towers, known as a convective burst, with tops reaching up to 16.3 km (10.1 miles). These towers when located near the storm's core are a strong indication that the storm is poised to strengthen as they, too, reveal the release of heat into the storm.
Two views of Joaquin from NASA's Aqua satellite, in visible light from Sept 29 at 2:10 p.m. EDT (Credit: NASA Goddard MODIS Rapid Response Team), with infrared inset from Sept. 30. (Credit: NASA JPL, Ed Olsen)
According to NASA:
On Sept. 30 at 2:11 a.m. EDT the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder or AIRS instrument aboard NASA's Aqua satellite provided an infrared look at Hurricane Joaquin. AIRS data showed strongest storms with coldest cloud tops were around the center of circulation and in a thick band of thunderstorms wrapping into the center from the south. Cloud top temperatures were as cold as -63 Fahrenheit/-53 Celsius, indicative of strong storms with the potential for heavy rain.
NASA's use of these space-based platforms to observe storms like Joaquin has become commonplace, but the importance of this shouldn't be forgotten. Without these satellites, and without NASA's work in both launching them and collecting and processing the data gathered by them, we would be blind to some of the most important facts about tropical storms and hurricanes, leaving us open to unexpected consequences.
RELATED: How will Hurricane Joaquin impact Canada? Details here
Colourful Ceres
Images of Ceres, sent back to Earth by NASA's Dawn spacecraft, have revealed some very interesting features in an overall fairly blandly-coloured landscape. However, take a look at the latest map of the dwarf planet.
This map-projected view of Ceres was created from images taken in August and September, 2015, during Dawn's high-altitude mapping orbit (HAMO). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA
This doesn't show true colour on Ceres' surface, though. In the same way that weather satellites use special filters on their cameras, to reveal variations of cloud and moisture that aren't apparent to the unaided eye, this view from NASA's Dawn spacecraft highlights the variation in brightness of the different features on the relatively uniform surface. This can give mission scientists clues as to the composition of the surface.
According to NASA:
Images taken using infrared (920 nanometers), red (750 nanometers) and blue (440 nanometers) spectral filters were combined to create this false-color view. Redder colors indicate places on Ceres' surface that reflect light strongly in the infrared, while bluish colors indicate enhanced reflectivity at short (bluer) wavelengths; green indicates places where albedo, or overall brightness, is strongly enhanced.
Two remarkable regions on Ceres - the cluster of bright spots in Occator crater (left) and the "Lonely Mountain" (right) - both stand out in these colour-enhanced elevation maps, and both remain mysteries to be solved. Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA (left) and NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA/PSI (right)
Why are NASA's rovers forbidden from visiting certain sites on Mars?
Right now, there are regions on the planet Mars that our rovers - Opportunity and Curiosity - are being kept from investigating. This is for a very specific reason, and if you're thinking this is going to involve aliens, you'd be right.
NASA's Curiosity rover snapped this composite selfie on August 5, 2015, from the location it drilled into a rock target called "Buckskin" on lower Mount Sharp. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
However, we're not talking about intelligent aliens here, staying just out of view of the rovers' cameras. This is less about sci-fi and more about hard science.
With NASA's announcement this week of flowing liquid water found on Mars, it naturally led to a discussion about what this means for the search for life on the Red Planet. The confirmation of seasonal flows of briny water on the surface has raised the potential for microbes to living there, just as similar flows here on Earth - such as those in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile - are home to microbes that use them as a source of water and energy.
So far, though, these recurring slope lineae (RSL) have only been investigated from orbit. Thus, while there is the potential for life to exist there, we don't have any direct way of figuring that out.
Why not send one of the rovers we have on the surface over to one of these RSL, to scoop in and tell us what's there? After all, it appears as though some of these recurring slope lineae are near the top of Mount Sharp, so certainly within reach of NASA's Curiosity rover.
Based on what was said during NASA's briefing on Monday, if we did send Curiosity over to check one of these out, there is a definite chance that it would detect signs of life. However, the problem is, there'd be no way to tell for sure if that life was native to Mars or a hitchhiker from Earth.
The rovers are cleaned as well as possible before they're packed up and launched to their destination, but there's just no way for the scientists to be absolutely sure that something didn't tag along on the journey.
Until they can be sure, it's better to just keep the rovers away from these areas. Not only does this avoid the potential embarrassment of reporting life on Mars that ultimately originated from somewhere in southern California, but it also avoids contaminating these Mars "garden spots" with organisms that may have an unexpected effect on the local environment.
In the end, while it makes the search for life more difficult, it's all about NASA keeping Mars for the Martians - at least for now.
What's coming up?
Thurs, Oct 1: Russia will be launching the Progress 61P Cargo Craft to the International Space Station, scheduled to lift off at 12:49 p.m. ET. NASA live coverage begins at 12:30 p.m. ET.
Thurs, Oct 1: More incredible images from Pluto will be released.
Fri, Oct 2: United Launch Alliance has scheduled the launch of Mexico's Morelos-3 mission for between 6:08–6:28 a.m. ET, with live web coverage beginning at 5:48 a.m. ET.
Sun, Oct 4 to Sat, Oct 10: World Space Week - "to celebrate each year at the international level the contributions of space science and technology to the betterment of the human condition.”
Sources: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center | NASA/JPL-Caltech | NASA