HOME >> BIOLOGY >> NEWS
NSF official describes hunt for antarctic meteorites related to new meteorite evidence of primitive life on Mars

A researcher supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) has published new evidence in the Feb. 27 edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that meteorite ALH84001, one of the meteorites retrieved from Antarctica, may contain remnants of primitive life that existed on Mars billions of years ago. Meteorite ALH84001 was discovered through the U.S. Antarctic Program's (USAP) Antarctic Search for Meteorites (ANSMET) program. NSF is making available video of Scott Borg of the U.S. Antarctic Program explaining how meteorite searches are conducted.

Background: ANSMET is supported by a grant to Case Western Reserve University in Ohio. Through ANSMET, scientists have been able to obtain material from meteorites that have fallen to earth from the moon and from Mars as well as elsewhere in the solar system. The Antarctic meteorite program is a collaborative effort of NSF, NASA, and the Smithsonian Institution. NASA and the Smithsonian Institution provide for the classification, curation, and distribution of Antarctic meteorites. All three agencies sponsor research on these specimens.

Since 1976, ANSMET has recovered more than 10,000 specimens from meteorite stranding surfaces in the Transantarctic mountains. These specimens are currently the only reliable, continuous source of new, non-microscopic extraterrestrial material. The study of Antarctic meteorites has greatly extended knowledge of the materials and conditions in the primeval nebula from which our solar system was born; revealed the complex and exotic geologic nature of asteroids; and proved that some specimens recovered from Antarctica represent planetary materials from the moon and Mars.


'"/>

Contact: Peter West
pwest@nsf.gov
703-292-8070
National Science Foundation
25-Feb-2001


Page: 1

Related biology news :

1. New guidelines can help health officials better predict and control dengue epidemics
2. Rutgers anthropologist, Fossey Fund official, announces plan to save Rwandas mountain gorillas
3. Would race disappear if the United States officially stopped measuring it?
4. U.S. and EC officials sign agreement to foster scientific collaboration
5. Wildlife officials to consider ban on caviar exports from major Caspian Sea nations
6. To combat poaching, Florida officials use wildlife forensics
7. Pfiesteria Event: Sea Grant and DNR officials report on attitudes and activities
8. Rutgers explorer describes sea floor hot springs as teeming with valuable minerals and microbes
9. Can a universal HIV-1 vaccine be developed? AIDScience.com describes current research strategies
10. Water, sediments in ice-bound antarctic lakes may harbor unique microorganisms, ecosystems
11. Ice-covered antarctic lake may harbor unknown life

Post Your Comments:
(Date:5/23/2013)... Health at Emory University, along with partners at ... $4 million grant over four years to establish ... Exposome Research Center: Understanding Lifetime Exposures). The grant ... the United States. , The HERCULES Center ... Health Sciences (NIEHS) of the National Institutes of ...
(Date:5/23/2013)... new report from the Institute of Medicine says schools ... least 60 minutes of vigorous or moderate intensity activity ... of American youth meet current evidence-based guidelines of at ... activity daily, according to the report, which was released ... nearly half of their waking hours, the committee recommends ...
(Date:5/23/2013)... pathogens are growing increasingly resistant to the conventional antibiotics ... scientists has synthesized a potent new class of compounds ... , Writing online in the Journal of the ... of Wisconsin-Madison chemistry Professor Helen Blackwell describes agents that ... Staphylococcus aureus , a bacterium at the root of ...
Breaking Biology News(10 mins):Emory, Georgia Tech receive first human exposome center grant in US 2Emory, Georgia Tech receive first human exposome center grant in US 3Schools should provide students with daily physical activity, IOM recommends 2University of Wisconsin chemists find new compounds to curb staph infection 2
(Date:5/23/2013)... BioTrends Research Group, one of the ... biopharmaceutical issues, finds that, unaided, one in five ... that in the past six months, they have ... anticipation of the next generation of HCV treatments—notably ... 6 percent reported that they had begun warehousing ...
(Date:5/23/2013)... 2013 Z Trim Holdings, Inc. (OTC Markets: ... variety of industries, announced that Chef Erin ... this year,s National Restaurant Association ("NRA") NRA Show, which ... the Research Chefs Association.  Chef Ryan spoke on the ... Bad and the Ugly," joining four other prestigious panelists ...
(Date:5/23/2013)... The New Jersey chapter of the ... Processing Associates (BDPA), is hosting its 10th annual Families ... all-day event will encourage students and their parents to ... outs from many of the industries’ finest teachers. Held ... Jersey Institute of Technology, the event will include workshops, ...
(Date:5/23/2013)... , May 23, 2013  Verenium Corporation (Nasdaq: ... focused on the development and commercialization of high-performance enzymes, ... Chief Financial Officer, will present at two upcoming conferences. ... Black will present at the Second Annual Marcum LLP ... Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York City.  The presentation ...
Breaking Biology Technology:The Majority of Physicians that Treat Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) Have Begun "Warehousing" and Preparing Their HCV Patients for the Next Generation of HCV Treatments 2The Majority of Physicians that Treat Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) Have Begun "Warehousing" and Preparing Their HCV Patients for the Next Generation of HCV Treatments 3Z Trim's Chef Erin Ryan sits on Expert Panel at NRA Show 2Z Trim's Chef Erin Ryan sits on Expert Panel at NRA Show 3Black Data Processing Associates (BDPA) New Jersey Hosts 10th Annual Families in Technology Day June 8, 2013 2Verenium To Present At Two Upcoming Conferences 2Verenium To Present At Two Upcoming Conferences 3
Cached News: