a martian oddbox

[ArMaP]

and here's me thinking you would drop an Alex jones Video up ... o well

Really? 

[funbox]

Really? 

no not really , even his façade is more sincere

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[Pimander]

Was that instrument's only purpose to do that CO2 analysis?

Sorry, it was the methane isotope ratio I was referring to.  I was enquiring because the presence of methane spikes which may indicate life.  If they could measure the isotope ratio a high proportion of C¹² to C¹⁴ would pretty much confirm a biological origin for the methane (living things use mostly C¹².

The instrument was the laser spectrometer on Curiosity's SAM.  It needed more CH₄ than was present to determine the isotope ratio.  Considering one of the main purposes of the Mars Rover is to look for signs of life I'd suggest they missed a massive opportunity there.

See: http://science.sciencemag.org/content/347/6220/415

Although according to Chris webster (lead author of the Science paper) italics Pimander

If Curiosity is lucky enough to observe another methane spike, Webster argues that relatively minor tweaks to the process of gathering "enriched" air samples could allow the rover to measure the ratio of carbon-12 to carbon-13 well enough to distinguish between a biotic and abiotic source. All that's needed, essentially, is a larger number of measurements and a longer "enrichment" time for Curiosity's air samples.

Such measurements, however, face competition as steep as the climb up Mount Sharp that the rover is now attempting. The last time Curiosity sniffed the air for methane, Webster says, was five months ago.

Curiosity was meant to be a mission to study signs of habitability on ancient Mars, not signs of life on Mars in the present day, says Paul Mahaffy, a senior Curiosity team member at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.

*SNIP*

"We'll continue to monitor for the methane, but unfortunately these experiments are power-hungry," Mahaffy says. "They consume a lot of [Curiosity's] resources, and there is always, always a lot of geology to do."

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/nasa-rover-finds-mysterious-methane-emissions-on-mars/

It irritates the hell out of me that Geology appears to take priority over potentially one of the greatest discoveries ever.  The methane is us possibly VERY close to proof.

NASA = Need Another Space Agency

They need me on the team next time. lol 

If fact, put me in charge with the same budget they had for the curiosity mission and we WILL find life!   

ETA:  Don't forget, team using the rover in New Mexico (or wherever) could find no signs of life using Geology and even missed massive dinosaur prints! Doh!

[ArMaP]

Considering one of the main purposes of the Mars Rover is to look for signs of life I'd suggest they missed a massive opportunity there.

Is it really? I thought it was looking for conditions that may support life (or something like that).

[funbox]

Is it really? I thought it was looking for conditions that may support life (or something like that).

remember a few years back when they were actively encouraging people to search their pictures for sign of fossil/ etc ?

how come they never mentioned that from the start ?

or was it reactionary ?

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[ArMaP]

remember a few years back when they were actively encouraging people to search their pictures for sign of fossil/ etc ?

No, do you have a link?

[funbox]

no ,no link , I remember their being a discussion about it in the anomalies thread .. there might have been a thread on it too , don't tell me you've forgotten?

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[ArMaP]

no ,no link , I remember their being a discussion about it in the anomalies thread .. there might have been a thread on it too , don't tell me you've forgotten?

I only forgot if it happened, at the moment we only have your word for it, and that's not enough for me.

[funbox]

I only forgot if it happened, at the moment we only have your word for it, and that's not enough for me.

well it in there somewhere , I think its anomalies 2015.. I would hardly lie about something so verifiable

although you can call me a liar if you like, im quite used to it by now

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[ArMaP]

well it in there somewhere , I think its anomalies 2015.. I would hardly lie about something so verifiable

If it's that verifiable why don't you do it?

although you can call me a liar if you like, im quite used to it by now

That's what you get for being "purposefully wrong".

[funbox]

If it's that verifiable why don't you do it?

because they're huge threads and I get advertising nonsense that slows the search to a crawl

but my memory is not wrong, I remember the hype surrounding it, the amusement, etc etc

That's what you get for being "purposefully wrong".

does the notion that Nasa wants you to hunt for anomalies , disturb you ?

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[ArMaP]

does the notion that Nasa wants you to hunt for anomalies , disturb you ?

No, I just want to know if it's true or not and, if true, who said it.

Edited to add that, although I'm used to be wrong, my memory (usually) works well with things I'm interested in, and I don't remember seeing it.

[funbox]

No, I just want to know if it's true or not and, if true, who said it.

Edited to add that, although I'm used to be wrong, my memory (usually) works well with things I'm interested in, and I don't remember seeing it.

Mandella effect ?

but seriously , im not wading through Ats to prove anything
it was just a question posed to you , not something to start a quest for truth

believe me or not , it matters not

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[Pimander]

Is it really? I thought it was looking for conditions that may support life (or something like that).

That is what they stated yes.  Surely you see my point though?  They spend all that money and have an opportunity to possibly detect strong evidence of life and the priority is instead to focus on geology when they can't even see signs of past life on Earth!  (using a rover I mean)

In my opinion it is a wasted opportunity.  No doubt about that.

[ArMaP]

Curiosity's (or Mars Science Laboratory, to use its real name) objectives, as posted here, were:

Biological objectives:
1 - Determine the nature and inventory of organic carbon compounds
2 - Inventory the chemical building blocks of life (carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorous, and sulfur)
3 - Identify features that may represent the effects of biological processes

Geological and geochemical objectives:
4 - Investigate the chemical, isotopic, and mineralogical composition of the martian surface and near-surface geological materials
5 - Interpret the processes that have formed and modified rocks and soils

Planetary process objectives:
6 - Assess long-timescale (i.e., 4-billion-year) atmospheric evolution processes
7 - Determine present state, distribution, and cycling of water and carbon dioxide

Surface radiation objective:
8 - Characterize the broad spectrum of surface radiation, including galactic cosmic radiation, solar proton events, and secondary neutrons