Comments on: Ice Found on Mars

By: NAM203

NAM203 — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 07:01:49 +0000

i say we dont spend enough on space exploration. for there to b a future 4 our species we must explore beyond our own planet no matter the cost.

By: Ian Kemmish

Ian Kemmish — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 14:04:40 +0000

But you've got to hand it to NASA for designing an experiment that won't let the soil sample into the testing chamber until AFTER all the ice in it has sublimated away!

By: Lemons

Lemons — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 01:32:41 +0000

"Sublime" is my new favorite verb now. Thanks, Wired!

By: graham!

graham! — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 20:50:21 +0000

It's water-ice not CO2 ice, and they know that for a fact. Here's how: The temperature and the air pressure is not correct for the formation of C02 "dry" ice. That's it.

By: Jimbo

Jimbo — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 20:46:57 +0000

I knew that ICE would be somewhere because they are NOT catching any Mexicans around here!

By: Alex P

Alex P — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 18:45:59 +0000

And if it was possible to go to mars we would just pollute it on purpose, since there is no atmosphere on mars all the heat escapse. If we cause global warming the planet will retain heat and it will warm up, then it would be possible to colinize mars

By: Alex P

Alex P — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 18:41:49 +0000

MOST OF YOU ARE VERY IGNORANT

OMG they spent money on something we will never use, Thats what the military does How often do they use giant battleships in iraq?

Knowledge is far more useful then money.

By: The Slapster

The Slapster — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 17:58:11 +0000

Way to go NASA, you're ruining what's obviously the ice supply for the largest kegger in the universe. Just bring some chips & pretzels next time huh?

By: joaquin

joaquin — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 17:57:33 +0000

Can't look at this this way, it actually helps in many ways. But agree we have needs over here.

By: superbad

superbad — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 16:14:04 +0000

Von Braun retired in 1972, so a fair bit. The Peenemünde scientists and engineers gave us a huge boost, but it's disingenuous to imply that the American space program was all theirs.

By: squirt199

squirt199 — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 16:01:26 +0000

considering the space program was started by germans smuggled out during WW2, how much of the space program can actually be attributed to american scientists and engineers anyway?

By: superbad

superbad — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 15:10:45 +0000

Reading internet comments on this story is such a perfect piece of evidence of what happens when the public school system stops teaching science and starts teaching self esteem.

"I don't know anything, but those scientists are dumbasses!"

After the current batch of American engineers and scientists retire or die, we won't be doing any more exploration, because we'll be completely populated by idiots. Leave it to the Chinese and Indians.

By: squirt199

squirt199 — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 15:01:11 +0000

Ok, one question I have is,

look at the temps on Mars

The temperature varies between minus 112 degrees Fahrenheit in the early morning and minus 22 degrees Fahrenheit in the afternoon.

How the hell does ice disappear at those temperatures? it didnt freakin melt thats for sure.

By: Lasse

Lasse — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 12:53:53 +0000

It isn't a choice between either science or solving all the problems on our planet. That's pretty naive.

By: Jeebus

Jeebus — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 11:55:00 +0000

Money spent on space programs doesn't end up in space, it's spent on thousands of earthlings doing research and construction. And then these earthlings spend the money on the local economy.

Some day earth will be swallowed by the sun. If earthlings don't find a way to leave then it will be as if we never existed.

By: TRSpook

TRSpook — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 11:49:53 +0000

we are all overlooking what might be the most obvious...uh, we're "guessing" that life "as we know it" may have existed on Mars....perhaps it still does....you have, what the scientists say "must be ice", because it's there one minute and gone the next time they checked...really, it has to be ice? Look at a time lapse of any populated place and do the inhabitants stay totally still all the time....what do we really know of life on other planets, perhaps they aren't forms we would recognize as life, perhaps they could look like...oh I don't know....ICE?

By: Evil Pundit

Evil Pundit — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 10:55:40 +0000

Humans should colonise space.

If our ancestors had MoonCake's attitude, we'd still be fish. But then, he'd probably think that was a good thing.

By: ted

ted — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 10:36:53 +0000

They should take the money spent on science and give it to potheads who are being anally raped in prison?

If it's a dead planet, why can't we drag it into our mess? Can't make it any worse...

By: MoonCake

MoonCake — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 10:26:06 +0000

thanks big pharma.. you taught us potheads something we DIDN'T know. but anyway-- so, ice on mars, eh? anyone really know why we're exploring dead planets? what difference would it make if we knew there was ice on mars? WOO HOO ICE ON MARS! NOW WE CAN... wait.. what can we do now? some people say "oh golly-- knowing there was life on mars, now we can live there!" no, wrong. we shouldn't live there. why? because we have enough problems to fix here, and we shouldn't drag another planet into our mess. it's that exact mentality that has gotten us into so much trouble here on our own planet.. the mentality that we can just replace what we've broken with something shiney and new. yes yes, i know people do it all the time-- that's why places like wal-mart still exist. but what happened to the REAL conservatives? not the neo-con bobble-heads on "faux" news, the REAL people who actually utilize their resources and save them at the same time-- not just throw them away only to buy a new one. exploration on mars is neat, don't get me wrong. exploration of anything outside our giant ball of rock is neat, but i really think we're wasting a lot of money and man-power just to discover ice on a nearby planet.

By: Tim Giachetti

Tim Giachetti — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 10:14:39 +0000

@Big Pharma, DEA, and the Federal Marijuana Erection

WTF does that have to do with this article?

If you want to rant on about feck all, start a blog like 99% of the other " what I say is important" idiots. Don't bring it in here.

By: Big Pharma, DEA, and the Federal Marijuana Erection

Big Pharma, DEA, and the Federal Marijuana Erection — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 09:28:07 +0000

search news.google.com for “marijuana”:

99% of it is about law enforcement TAKING people’s land because of grows. People say, “Legalize marijuana and the state/country will make money from it” but isn’t more money made FOR government by busting growers and sellers and taking all of their property, cars, drugs, etc.? Read history and discover how a lot of law enforcement RESELL the dope and the history of CIA involvement in drugs. Private prisons are in business to get repeat customers.

Non-violent pot smokers are sent to prison to be anally raped and have diseased gangland semen injected into their rectum and may face a life ending disease just because they wanted to smoke a weed. Datura, Foxglove, and other plants which you could smoke could kill you quickly but they are legal, isn’t that fun? Marijuana is illegal today because governments profit from it being illegal. Just like with alcohol prohibition. See LEAP’s website, Law Enfocement Against Prohibition for some good information, and MPP’s website. It doesn’t matter whether people want to smoke pot for recreation or as medicine, it should be legal and they should have the right.

It is illegal now only in places where the people are too scared to stand up together and shout, “NO MORE!” so they grow in closets and pass their money to people on the street who may be buying who knows what with the money they receive. Anyone who condemns a marijuana user is either a member of law enforcement who profits from it being illegal, ignorant, or both. There are plenty of pretenders on-line who are members of law enforcement or collaborators/informants who participate in such discussions as this and try to spread F.U.D., don’t listen to them. Marijuana can and will be legal when the people stand together and say, “NO MORE!” Big Pharma and their liver rotting pain killers and tons of meds with side effects are the real drug dealers, and guess which agency protects them? You guessed it, the same agency which raids marijuana growers and clinics.

It’s all about money in the land of the free, where sharing and community is evil, and stepping on the back of your fellow man to make a buck is the law of the land.

By: Alex P

Alex P — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 08:30:29 +0000

ive been waiting for this since thay first lauched the rocket, this is frickin amaizing! This gives the possiblity of life on mars even if its microbal.

By the way im only 15, im just a huge astronomy nerd.

By: Evil Pundit

Evil Pundit — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 08:12:53 +0000

The kids aren't starving because of space probes. They're starving because of the corrupt governments of their own countries.

By: SenorMysterioso

SenorMysterioso — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 05:20:55 +0000

And to think, the other astronauts mocked Fred for bringing his snoopy sno cone machine to Mars. mmmmmm Martian sno cone

By: Thomas

Thomas — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 05:04:34 +0000

Wow, that's harsh. "Screw those starving kids, gimmie more space ice!"

By: Josh

Josh — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 04:37:30 +0000

Our understanding of the universe must continue. Science must receive even more money than is already supplied. You want to help starving people, take one of your paychecks, spend the entirely of it on food, and send it to haiti. Governments will not help starving people, nor will corporations. There's no money it. You want them to not starve, sacrifice some of what YOU have and send it to them. Don't punish science for the sake of people that are essentially already dead.

By: K!P

K!P — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 04:30:17 +0000

the real question: what kind of ice? could be frozen co2. if it's water it would be great! /futuredream: Future source of 02 and hydrogen as rocketfeul. you know when the colonists whant to go back and visit friends on earth. /end dream

By: Calvin

Calvin — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 04:25:50 +0000

proof that global warming exist in mars

By: superbad

superbad — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 03:55:58 +0000

Memo

Attention scientists: effective immediately, science is officially canceled. Your services are no longer required. Your 2009 budget will be given to starving people. Please drop off all your equipment at Goodwill on your way home. Thank you.

The Man

By: mattytiz

mattytiz — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 02:44:24 +0000

How much money did this cost?

We have ice here already, not to mention millions of people starving.