hmmm....seems like there's something left from The40DaysAnd40Nights, huh...the following is excerpted and condensed from the following link:
Did the Phoenix spacecraft find liquid water on Mars?
BY CRAIG COVAULT
SPACEFLIGHT NOW Posted: March 8, 2009
Post-mission analysis of Phoenix Mars lander data is turning up strong new "smoking gun evidence" that the spacecraft discovered liquid water on the Red Planet. The data that Phoenix imaged and touched liquid water is a stunning discovery that directly relates to the potential for current or past life on Mars.
The discovery has historic implications far beyond the lander's earlier finding of hard-frozen water ice. That's because as far as science knows today, life can exist in the salty brine-like water found by Phoenix, but it can not form in hard-frozen water also found by Phoenix at its north polar landing site, where nighttime winter temperatures are routinely -100 degrees F.
In an equally important finding, the Phoenix team says the data collected indicate that such liquid water is not only at the landing site, but likely exists currently at many locations around Mars.
Scientists earlier believed all of the water carved features on Mars were created billions of years ago’ but many of those features did not fit with such old geology.
The lander data provides both thermodynamic and physical evidence for the widespread existence of current high salt content water on Mars, say the Phoenix investigators.
Based on multiple Phoenix and other Mars data sources, the science team says it is confident in saying "we hypothesize that liquid saline-water is [currently] common on Mars."
...and now if we can only find the launchpad of Noah's Mothership, err Ark...
2 b continued
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