NASA discovery on Mars "For the history books"

[Hero in a half shell]

Scientists have found... something on Mars, but they aren't telling what it is yet. It seems to have come from a soil sample.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/science/7984572/Mars-discovery-for-the-history-books

Spoiler

Mars watchers are in a ferment after hints from Nasa that it has found something significant on the red planet, but its keeping the discovery secret for now.

"This data is gonna be one for the history books. It's looking really good," John Grotzinger, the principal investigator for the Mars rover mission said.

But he is keeping mum on the details for now until researchers have been able to make sure the finding is not some fluke or error.

The exciting results have come from the Curiosity rover's SAM, the Sample Analysis at Mars suite of three instruments, which analyse soil and gases.

"We're getting data from SAM as we sit here and speak, and the data looks really interesting," Grotzinger said last week in his office at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, where data from SAM first arrive on Earth.

Grotzinger said a soil sample recently analysed in SAM showed something earthshaking, NPR reported.

It would be several weeks before he and his team would be ready to talk about it.

Ok Escapists, place your bets, what have they found?!?
I hope it's water, if just to see some scientists really sweat about their prior contamination of Curiosities sampling equipment: http://www.businessinsider.com/mars-rover-contaminated-with-earth-bacteria-2012-9 They said they wouldn't drill in water, that'd really test them.

 

[JoJo]

Tentatively... perhaps chemicals which are usually associated with life? Perhaps a bit hopeful here but who knows, it could happen. One for the history books is a pretty big statement, though it could just be that, a statement.

 

[Pinkamena]

It will likely not be of much interest to the general public. For the scientific community however... My guess is that they have either found an interesting composition of the sand, or there's organic molecules present.

 

[Quaxar]

Amino acids. Yep, I'm going with those. Would be a pretty rad find to have actual organic cemistry.

 

[Spoonius]

Wow... that's actually really exciting.

 

[Giftfromme]

It will be the remains of the 3 titted woman off Total Recal

 

[Terminate421]

It will be a Transformer.

 

[Luftwaffles]

10dollars on soviet mars base. Why do you think it was so red?

 

[DoPo]

OK, a wild prediction, if NASA decides to relocate to Mars and changes its name to Adeptus Mechanicus, I guess we should all start praying to the Emperor, since they've probably found the Void Dragon.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

OK, a wild prediction, if NASA decides to relocate to Mars and changes its name to Adeptus Mechanicus, I guess we should all start praying to the Emperor, since they've probably found the Void Dragon.

There will be a new board game commissioned in the Void Dragon's honour: Settlers of C'Tan.

 

[DoPo]

OK, a wild prediction, if NASA decides to relocate to Mars and changes its name to Adeptus Mechanicus, I guess we should all start praying to the Emperor, since they've probably found the Void Dragon.

There will be a new board game commissioned in the Void Dragon's honour: Settlers of C'Tan.

That made me laugh so hard! Well done, here

Spoiler: have a cookie

 

[Soviet Heavy]

OK, a wild prediction, if NASA decides to relocate to Mars and changes its name to Adeptus Mechanicus, I guess we should all start praying to the Emperor, since they've probably found the Void Dragon.

There will be a new board game commissioned in the Void Dragon's honour: Settlers of C'Tan.

That made me laugh so hard! Well done, here

Spoiler: have a cookie

What, no milk!? I DEMAND MILK FOR THE KHORNE FLAKES.

 

[The Rogue Wolf]

The charred remains of Duck Dodgers?

Impossible! He was wearing a disintegration-proof vest!

 

[J. MB]

Dr Manhattan's piss stain, yep. That has to be it.

 

[dancinginfernal]

Multi-cellular life maybe? I'm kinda excited to see.

 

[Darks63]

Alien Artifacts perhaps? but with the sand storms on that planet that would be unlikely prolly found water

 

[Thaluikhain]

Eh...what? Why not wait until they are going to tell people before they tell people.

OK, a wild prediction, if NASA decides to relocate to Mars and changes its name to Adeptus Mechanicus, I guess we should all start praying to the Emperor, since they've probably found the Void Dragon.

There will be a new board game commissioned in the Void Dragon's honour: Settlers of C'Tan.

...

Oh, that was awful.

 

[Pink Gregory]

I hope it's a baseball.