After Now 4,000 Cold Nights, In A Row... On Mars: Onward -- Curiosity!

It must be said: in science, curiosity, more than almost any other virtue -- is a prerequisite. Without it, science never will advance. And to be sure, each of those intervening 4,000 nights probably felt pretty bleak, at around minus 75 to minus 110 degrees. . . night after frigid night. But to be fair, on the peak summer days, midday might reach 60 on the plus side.

In view of all this -- based on earlier 2021 data, it does look like the Martian "rocky remains" environment corresponds nicely with the ratios of organic carbon compounds we see in the geologic record, in low life-level deserts, here on Earth. Not definitive, but this is more evidence that Mars -- when wetter, and blanketed by an atmosphere, billions of years ago. . . may have been home to. . . life. And we may all thank Curiosity's 4,000 cold nights' of duty -- for that evidence.

Here's the latest bit, on 4,000 Sols on Mars -- from NASA

. . .Four thousand Martian days after setting its wheels in Gale Crater on Aug. 5, 2012, NASA’s Curiosity rover remains busy conducting exciting science. The rover recently drilled its 39th sample then dropped the pulverized rock into its belly for detailed analysis.

To study whether ancient Mars had the conditions to support microbial life, the rover has been gradually ascending the base of 3-mile-tall (5-kilometer-tall) Mount Sharp, whose layers formed in different periods of Martian history and offer a record of how the planet’s climate changed over time.

The latest sample was collected from a target nicknamed “Sequoia” (all of the mission’s current science targets are named after locations in California’s Sierra Nevada). Scientists hope the sample will reveal more about how the climate and habitability of Mars evolved as this region became enriched in sulfates -- minerals that likely formed in salty water that was evaporating as Mars first began drying up billions of years ago. Eventually, Mars’ liquid water disappeared for good. . . .

Now you know -- and in truth, it puts us in mind of other heady days, now eleven years on. . . smile.

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