NASA’s Curiosity rover has detected yet another ingredient for life on Mars: nitrogen that would have been usable by living organisms. Nitrogen is required for all life on Earth, but it has to be in a certain “fixed” state before it’s accessible to many forms of life, like plants. That’s the way researchers found it in samples collected on Mars. The finding suggests that Mars could have supported a nitrogen cycle, which on Earth involves bacteria creating fixed nitrogen, which then works its way into plants, and eventually back into the soil, where the cycle repeats. In Mars’ case, the found nitrogen likely arose from lightning strikes or heat from an impact. But the researchers say that it’s enough to warrant continued research into evidence for an ancient nitrogen cycle on Mars.
via The Verge
March 25, 2015
featured blogs
Apr 25, 2024
Structures in Allegro X layout editors let you create reusable building blocks for your PCBs, saving you time and ensuring consistency. What are Structures? Structures are pre-defined groups of design objects, such as vias, connecting lines (clines), and shapes. You can combi...
Apr 25, 2024
See how the UCIe protocol creates multi-die chips by connecting chiplets from different vendors and nodes, and learn about the role of IP and specifications.The post Want to Mix and Match Dies in a Single Package? UCIe Can Get You There appeared first on Chip Design....
Apr 18, 2024
Are you ready for a revolution in robotic technology (as opposed to a robotic revolution, of course)?...