The spiky, Sputnik-shaped fossils of several microorganisms have reinvigorated biologists hopes that life once wriggled on Mars. The tiny creatures wallowed in brackish, acidic pools of water in the deserts of North Dakota about 250 million years ago—pools that are strikingly similar to those that once dotted the surface of the red planet. 

Kathleen Benison, a geologist at Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, discovered the fossilized microorganisms in sediment at the bottom of pools. They’re not much to look at: clumps of inorganic crystals about 0.05 to 1.5 millimeters in diameter with spiky graphite “hairs.” Benison’s team believes that each one of the hairs represents a remnant of an organism because they are made of disordered graphite, which signals organic assembly. 

The pools where the organisms were found are described as some of the harshest environments on earth; too salty and acidic for even basic bacteria. So how did the bugs survive? The team of scientists believe they dined on a mineral diet, extracting energy from chemical reactions of sulfur in the salty water.

The Mars connection: A few hundred million years ago, Mars was covered with tiny pools with a similarly salty composition. Tentative proof that life survived in hellish ponds on earth makes biologists think that it could have eked out a living on Mars. 

NASA’s Phoenix rover, currently on a geological mission in the red planet’s norther polar region, isn’t equipped to search for fossils. It is, however, equipped to check for more signs of water and the types of minerals that could’ve supported life. 

Fossilized microscopic martians may not sound exciting, but their discovery could signal that life isn’t confined to our little planet and may be blooming across the universe.

Link to NewScientist article.

Decades of planning and research culminated in triumphant ecstasy today when NASA’s Phoenix Mars lander plunged its trembly multi-million-dollar armature into the soft, powdery Martian soil near its landing site. Then, in a display of sublime surrealism, Phoenix promptly dumped its prize back onto the ground.

NASA calls it a practice scoop, a maneuver to test Phoenix’s delicate digging arm before it begins testing soil samples with its onboard geological laboratory. All systems appear to be go, so further testing will continue. 

The scoop did reveal more shimmering material (Phoenix photographed a shimmering patch of what could be ice directly below its landing gear earlier this week) that could be ice or salt, NASA officials say.

Link to New Scientist article.

Link to Science Daily article.