NASA finds 3 bn years old organic molecules in rocks on Mars
Washington, June 8 : NASA announced on Thursday that its robot explorer Curiosity, which landed on Mars in 2012 and has been exploring there ever since, found organic molecules in rocks formed three billion years ago, a discovery that could indicate that there was life on the Red Planet at that time.
Paul Mahaffy, Director of NASA's Solar System exploration division, said that although this is an exciting discover scientists still cannot confirm how the molecules originated.
They could be evidence for the development of ancient life on Mars but they could also have come from a meteorite or other sources, Efe reported.
Despite the fact that it is still not clear how these molecules were created, NASA emphasized that these kinds of particles could have been the food source for hypothetical microbial life on Mars.
Jennifer Eigenbrode, with the NASA's Goddard Space Center in Maryland, said that the organic molecules found on Mars do not provide specific evidence of life since "they could have come from things that are non-biological".
In any case, however, the molecules may provide key information to scientists in their continuing search for life on Mars, since "All life that we know of is based on organic molecules," Eigenbrode explained.
She said that although the surface of Mars is presently "inhospitable", indications are that in the distant past the Martian climate allowed liquid water to exist on the planet's surface.
The data gathered by Curiosity reveal that billions of years ago there was a shallow lake of water inside the Gale Crater on Mars that contained all the ingredients necessary for life as we know it, including chemical building blocks and energy sources.
Eigenbrode said that -- now that potential signs of ancient life have been found -- future missions to Mars will delve deeper into the issue of organic molecules and other possible markers for life.
Curiosity found the first indications of water on Mars in 2013 and it also determined that the concentration of methane in the planet's thin atmosphere fluctuates regularly with the Martian seasons.
Although the origin of the gas is unknown, scientists say it could have been trapped underground as a byproduct of organic processes in the distant past and is now slowly seeping out.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
'Godman' Kharat held in 8th sexual exploitation case; court denies police remand, sends him to jail
Nashik (PTI): Police took custody of self-proclaimed godman-cum-astrologer Ashok Kharat in an eighth case related to sexual exploitation of women and produced him before a Nashik district court which sent him to jail till May 12 after rejecting the plea for his police remand on Thursday.
On April 29, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Nashik police in north Maharashtra filed a request application in the court demanding Kharat's custody in the eighth case.
After the court granted them the necessary permission, the SIT took custody of Kharat, who was in jail in connection with the seventh case of sexual exploitation registered against him.
The 'godman', named in a dozen FIRs related to rape and financial fraud, was produced before Chief Judicial Magistrate B N Ichpurani in the eighth case through video conferencing due to security reasons.
The eighth case related to Kharat allegedly sexually exploiting a woman who had approached him in search of solutions to her family problems, according to police.
During the hearing, the prosecution demanded police custody of the accused in the latest case.
However, the defence strongly opposed the demand and argued that the SIT was giving same reasons for police custody every time and there was no strong reason for accepting their plea.
The court accepted the argument put forth by the defence and remanded Kharat to judicial custody till May 12 in the eighth case.
The SIT will produce Kharat in the court on Friday again and seek his police custody in the ninth case. As the self-styled godman has been granted judicial custody in the eighth case, he will be sent to Nashik Road Central Jail and the SIT will take his custody from there.
Meanwhile, Kharat's judicial custody in the fourth case ended on Thursday. On April 18, the accused was remanded to judicial custody till April 30 in the fourth case of sexual exploitation of women.
In a related development, the SIT conducted a search at Kharat's office in the 'Canada Corner' area of Nashik city on Wednesday. A 'panchnama' (record of search and seizure proceedings) was conducted and the office was locked and sealed again.
Kharat, a well-heeled man with political connections, was arrested for the first time on March 18 after a woman alleged he had repeatedly raped her for three years.
He is accused of sexually exploiting several women by claiming to have divine powers and knowledge of black magic, and also committing large-scale financial fraud.
The SIT is conducting a probe into 12 cases of sexual exploitation and financial fraud registered against the astrologer in Nashik and Ahilyanagar districts.
