Mars Robot Unearths Microbe Clue

The broken wheel of the NASA rover named Spirit has churned up soil that appears to be very silica-rich. This could be either a hot spring or a fumarole deposit. When either a hot spring or fumarole is found on Earth, microbial life is usually found in abundance as well. This is because the hot water provides an environment in which the microbes can survive, and the "the precipitation of that silica entombs and preserves them." So, while the Spirit rover is unable to search for actual signs of life on Mars, it has been suggested that the next rovers sent up to Mars, which will be able to search for chemical traces of life, look for silica-rich areas such as the one found by spirit.

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