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posted by janrinok on Saturday September 21 2019, @03:42PM   Printer-friendly
from the late-night-raves dept.

Submitted via IRC for Bytram

Mysterious magnetic pulses discovered on Mars

At midnight on Mars, the red planet's magnetic field sometimes starts to pulsate in ways that have never before been observed. The cause is currently unknown.

That's just one of the stunning preliminary findings from NASA's very first robotic geophysicist there, the InSight lander. Since touching down in November 2018, this spacecraft has been gathering intel to help scientists better understand our neighboring planet's innards and evolution, such as taking the temperature of its upper crust, recording the sounds of alien quakes, and measuring the strength and direction of the planet's magnetic field.

As revealed during a handful of presentations this week at a joint meeting of the European Planetary Science Congress and the American Astronomical Society, the early data suggest the magnetic machinations of Mars are marvelously mad.

In addition to the odd magnetic pulsations, the lander's data show that the Martian crust is far more powerfully magnetic than scientists expected. What's more, the lander has picked up on a very peculiar electrically conductive layer, about 2.5 miles thick, deep beneath the planet's surface. It's far too early to say with any certainty, but there is a chance that this layer could represent a global reservoir of liquid water.

On Earth, groundwater is a hidden sea locked up in sand, soil, and rocks. If something similar is found on Mars, then "we shouldn't be surprised," says Jani Radebaugh, a planetary scientist at Brigham Young University who was not involved with the work. But if these results bear out, a liquid region at this scale on modern Mars has enormous implications for the potential for life, past or present. (Get the facts about previous evidence for an underground lake on Mars.)

So far, none of these data have been through peer review, and details about the initial findings and interpretations will undoubtedly be tweaked over time. Still, the revelations provide a stunning showcase for InSight, a robot that has the potential to revolutionize our comprehension of Mars and other rocky worlds across the galaxy.


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  • (Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 21 2019, @04:02PM (4 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 21 2019, @04:02PM (#896835)

    Those darkie thieves are sneaking around Mars in the middle of the night, trying to steal the magnetic poles! It's always the niggers!

    • (Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 21 2019, @04:48PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 21 2019, @04:48PM (#896845)

      Polar caps aren't hubcaps.

    • (Score: 2, Funny) by Subsentient on Saturday September 21 2019, @05:02PM (2 children)

      by Subsentient (1111) on Saturday September 21 2019, @05:02PM (#896848) Homepage Journal

      You're a turd because I bet you actually are racist, but you made me laugh nonetheless. I'm going to hell.

      --
      "It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society." -Jiddu Krishnamurti
      • (Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 21 2019, @05:47PM (1 child)

        by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 21 2019, @05:47PM (#896857)

        You will enjoy being raped by niggers in hell.

        • (Score: 1, Redundant) by Subsentient on Sunday September 22 2019, @12:49AM

          by Subsentient (1111) on Sunday September 22 2019, @12:49AM (#896965) Homepage Journal

          Mmmm, phat nigger dick.

          --
          "It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society." -Jiddu Krishnamurti
  • (Score: 2) by Dr Spin on Saturday September 21 2019, @04:32PM (1 child)

    by Dr Spin (5239) on Saturday September 21 2019, @04:32PM (#896841)

    Need I say more?

    --
    Warning: Opening your mouth may invalidate your brain!
    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 22 2019, @09:36PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 22 2019, @09:36PM (#897257)

      Yes.

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 21 2019, @04:50PM (4 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 21 2019, @04:50PM (#896846)

    Midnight? Which timezone? Tharsis Mean Time? Elysium Daylight Time?

    • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 21 2019, @05:16PM (2 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 21 2019, @05:16PM (#896852)

      Midnight at the location where the measurements were taken.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 22 2019, @02:12AM (1 child)

        by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 22 2019, @02:12AM (#896977)

        Which timezone is this location in? Tharsis Mean Time? Elysium Daylight Time?

        • (Score: 2) by Immerman on Sunday September 22 2019, @02:31PM

          by Immerman (3985) on Sunday September 22 2019, @02:31PM (#897110)

          Solar time I'd imagine. You know - the universally relevant time system wherein noon is when the sun is at the directly overhead, and midnight is when it's directly underneath you (well, highest and lowest points anyway)

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 22 2019, @11:19AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 22 2019, @11:19AM (#897069)

      Meet me, meet me at Midnight,
      Among the Queen Anne’s lace
      Midnight is not a moment
      Midnight is a place

      When, when shall I meet you
      When shall I see your face
      For I am living in time at present
      But you are living in space

      Time is only a corner
      Age is only a fold
      A year is merely a penny
      Spent from a century's gold

      So meet me, meet me at midnight
      With sixty seconds' grace
      For Midnight is no moment
      Midnight is a place

      O Turn, turn the pages
      Read, read the words
      Thoughts float like feathers
      Tales fly like birds

      And night's winged horses
      No one can outpace
      But midnight is no moment
      Midnight is a place

      (Denzil's Song - Joan Aiken)

  • (Score: 2) by Gaaark on Saturday September 21 2019, @07:15PM (1 child)

    by Gaaark (41) on Saturday September 21 2019, @07:15PM (#896893) Journal

    Around midnight is when a certain part of me starts pulsating...

    "Damn you, Dick Richards!"

    --
    --- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 21 2019, @07:59PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 21 2019, @07:59PM (#896906)

      Dick, Dick, Dick, Dick of Earl.

  • (Score: 2) by Rupert Pupnick on Saturday September 21 2019, @09:40PM (1 child)

    by Rupert Pupnick (7277) on Saturday September 21 2019, @09:40PM (#896918) Journal

    If I give National Geographic my email address in the hope that the article will contain information about the magnitude and frequency of these gravitational pulses, will I be disappointed?

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 22 2019, @02:14AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 22 2019, @02:14AM (#896979)

      Better give it to Martian Geographic. Or is it National Marsographic?

  • (Score: 2) by Geezer on Saturday September 21 2019, @10:51PM (2 children)

    by Geezer (511) on Saturday September 21 2019, @10:51PM (#896929)

    With enough field displacement and the right coil? Storage for off-hours? Is Martian beer any good?

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 22 2019, @02:16AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 22 2019, @02:16AM (#896981)

      > Is Martian beer any good?
      Do you like chlorates with your beer?

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 22 2019, @11:55AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Sunday September 22 2019, @11:55AM (#897073)

      Is Martian beer any good?

      Only if they make it from fermented marcaine weed..
      mmmm....moreish martian markie juice...

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 21 2019, @11:17PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 21 2019, @11:17PM (#896940)

    It says MMGA , Make Mars Great Again.

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