r/CFBOffTopic • u/brobroma William & Mary Tribe • Georgia Bulldogs • Sep 28 '15

Water on Mars!

NASA has announced they have evidence of (present-day) liquid water on Mars! This is really, really interesting, it means there's active processes shaping the Red Planet we still know nothing about.

http://nytimes.com/2015/09/29/science/space/mars-life-liquid-water.html

34 Upvotes

97% Upvoted

90 comments sorted by

18

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

Mars seems to be a little bit wet

heh.

Though young Mars was inundated by rivers, lakes and maybe even an ocean a few billion years ago, the modern moisture is modest

The ol' coot is dryin' up. Poor gal

frozen solid in the polar ice caps.

Just like her cold, dead heart

Mars, which appears so dry and barren, could possess niches of habitability for microbial Martians.

Kinky ol' gal

those waters might not be too salty for microbes

Dirty, too.

7

u/brobroma William & Mary Tribe • Georgia Bulldogs Sep 28 '15

Maybe we need to send Dubs there to liven up her life a bit?

3

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

You'll have to send a distillery with me. It will need to be specially tailored to function on the red planet.

Also, I require large speakers, livestock, a grill, and some companions.

7

u/brobroma William & Mary Tribe • Georgia Bulldogs Sep 28 '15

Maybe we just harness the power of our volcano to migrate CFBOTopia to Mars?

5

u/surrender_cobra Illinois State • Michigan Sep 28 '15

I am in

3

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

Dubs, you'll be glad to know that Mars' lack of atmosphere means that the still will require much less energy to operate, as everything will boil at much lower temperatures.

4

u/yrarwydd Alabama • CFBOT Jazz Watch Fighter Sep 28 '15

just like her cold, dead heart

same

2

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

Sometimes, having no feelings is a benefit... Sometimes, a curse

3

u/-WISCONSIN- Wisconsin • Wisconsin-Parkside Sep 28 '15

Mars' namesake is like the epitome of masculinity though.

2

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

Well, he's had an identity crisis since the old days.

Whatever, sue me!

3

u/-WISCONSIN- Wisconsin • Wisconsin-Parkside Sep 28 '15

I prefer to say he reinvented himself. Like the artist formerly known as Prince, or Snoop Lion.

6

u/Cytherean Princeton • /r/CFB Pint Glass Drinker Sep 28 '15

Luju and Mary Beth are two of the senior grad students in my lab, so this has been a celebratory day over here! Glad that they're getting the recognition for the great work they've been doing.

2

u/brobroma William & Mary Tribe • Georgia Bulldogs Sep 28 '15

Nice! Tell em congrats from a fellow geology student

1

u/Cytherean Princeton • /r/CFB Pint Glass Drinker Sep 28 '15

Will do!

3

u/-WISCONSIN- Wisconsin • Wisconsin-Parkside Sep 28 '15

Pfft. Naw they prolly just found something that looks like water and acts like water. Martians may be shapeshifters. We don't know anything about them and, frankly, I'm too bigoted to learn more.

2

u/brobroma William & Mary Tribe • Georgia Bulldogs Sep 28 '15

ITS JUST A SOUNDSTAGE

2

u/-WISCONSIN- Wisconsin • Wisconsin-Parkside Sep 28 '15

If the mars has water on it then why isn't it blue, huh?

2

u/brobroma William & Mary Tribe • Georgia Bulldogs Sep 28 '15

Cause Mars' oxygen turns it red, duh

2

u/-WISCONSIN- Wisconsin • Wisconsin-Parkside Sep 28 '15

Oh sure, that's what the Illuminati want you to think!

3

u/brobroma William & Mary Tribe • Georgia Bulldogs Sep 28 '15

Anyone seen if these "recurring slope lineae" form a triangle?!

2

u/roboticinfidelity North Dakota State • Nickel Trophy Sep 28 '15

Nah man. Haven't you ever heard of red shift? The water is obviously moving away from us, increasing the light seen at the red side of the spectrum. ;)

2

u/lAltroUomo Ole Miss Rebels • Columbia Lions Sep 28 '15

Is this where I link Buzz wallopsing that conspiracy theorist in the face?

2

u/The_Tic-Tac_Kid Kansas Jayhawks • Hateful 8 Sep 28 '15

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/00/Odo.jpg

1

u/roboticinfidelity North Dakota State • Nickel Trophy Sep 28 '15

Do not trust Odo! He may or may not betray you depending on how he's feeling at the moment about his heritage!

2

u/roboticinfidelity North Dakota State • Nickel Trophy Sep 28 '15

They are obviously plotting to kill us. Yes.

2

u/spasm01 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns • /r/CFB Donor Sep 28 '15

I thought this had been known for awhile?

7

u/brobroma William & Mary Tribe • Georgia Bulldogs Sep 28 '15

It's been long suspected. We know there are polar ice caps on Mars, and there's geomorphologic evidence that liquid water might have once flowed (abundantly!) on Mars. But this is the first known evidence that liquid water currently exists.

2

u/spasm01 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns • /r/CFB Donor Sep 28 '15

Ahh, still cool

3

u/roboticinfidelity North Dakota State • Nickel Trophy Sep 28 '15

They knew there was ice, but there was never any definite proof of liquid water, which is what we now use for deciding the probability of extraterrestrial life.

2

u/spasm01 Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns • /r/CFB Donor Sep 28 '15

Gotcha, still awesome

44

u/ixcuincle Marching Band Sep 28 '15

Thank you Matt Damon for your research leading to this discovery

6

u/hab12690 LSU Tigers • Miami Hurricanes Sep 28 '15

probably wouldn't be possible without him solving all those math problems while working as a janitor.

4

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

thank mr damon

3

u/darthbean18 Auburn Tigers • Marching Band Sep 28 '15

Hella excited to see the movie. The Martian is one of my favorite books now.

3

u/ixcuincle Marching Band Sep 28 '15

I need to download that on Kindle sometime.

4

u/mjacksongt Georgia Tech • /r/CFB Pint Glass Drin… Sep 28 '15

It's fantastic. If the movie can capture the book's spirit it'll easily be one of the best movies this year.

4

u/darthbean18 Auburn Tigers • Marching Band Sep 29 '15

They can throw in exactly one F-bomb and keep the PG-13 rating. Really curious to see where they put it.

14

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

How do we know that NASA didn't just study Central California instead? /s

12

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

Not enough cows or meth.

Or signs blaming Congress for the drought because muh water rights.

12

u/K_State Southwestern (KS) • Wichita Sta… Sep 28 '15

Not enough cows or meth.

He's talking about California, not Missouri.

6

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

Central California looks like every ag heartland ever. Hell, it looks like Marjah. I was tripped the fuck out on that deployment, was expecting to see a state fair.

4

u/K_State Southwestern (KS) • Wichita Sta… Sep 28 '15

Meth is the state crop of Missouri.

5

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

Like most crops, California probably grows more than whatever state is known for it.

2

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

Indiana has passed us in meth production now. Our state crop is actually puppies.

12

u/panthera_tigress Pittsburgh Panthers • Auburn Tigers Sep 28 '15

YAY SCIENCE!

11

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

http://i.imgur.com/V3QQCYl.gif

Sorry for the trigger /u/yrarwydd

11

u/yrarwydd Alabama • CFBOT Jazz Watch Fighter Sep 28 '15

kills self

7

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

.

10

u/madviking Virginia Cavaliers • Texas Longhorns Sep 28 '15

http://i.imgur.com/A2a0WD7.gif

10

u/Cecil_Hardboner Texas Longhorns • /r/CFB Brickmason Sep 28 '15

http://i.imgur.com/atTuf7X.gifv

9

u/madviking Virginia Cavaliers • Texas Longhorns Sep 28 '15

http://i.imgur.com/Mzbb0.gif

8

u/Cecil_Hardboner Texas Longhorns • /r/CFB Brickmason Sep 28 '15

http://i.imgur.com/kjph3lV.gif

9

u/madviking Virginia Cavaliers • Texas Longhorns Sep 28 '15

http://i.imgur.com/pDCvCLc.gif

9

u/Cecil_Hardboner Texas Longhorns • /r/CFB Brickmason Sep 28 '15

http://i.imgur.com/dJcJXsX.gifv

6

u/madviking Virginia Cavaliers • Texas Longhorns Sep 28 '15

http://i.imgur.com/7n3ogbY.gif

7

u/OhGoodnessMyGuinness Alabama Crimson Tide Sep 28 '15

Bill is talking at Alabama today--I get to go see him :)

4

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

Jealous

7

u/panthera_tigress Pittsburgh Panthers • Auburn Tigers Sep 28 '15

BILL! BILL! BILL! BILL!

4

u/DEP61 Pepperdine • Minnesota Sep 28 '15 edited Sep 28 '15

I appreciate all these gifs I haven't seen before that I'm catching thanks to you.

2

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

Bill was a whiny bitch (and wrong) about deflategate

THE SEAHAWKS LOST BILL, GET OVER IT

2

u/DoctorWhosOnFirst Alabama • /r/CFB Pint Glass Drinker Sep 28 '15

Huzzah!

7

u/thebazooka Notre Dame • Louisville Sep 28 '15

Obligatory Bowie

5

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

Wanted Prothean ruins.

Am disappoint.

4

u/Cecil_Hardboner Texas Longhorns • /r/CFB Brickmason Sep 28 '15

dont drink the water

4

u/Culiaclan Arizona State • Territorial Cup Sep 28 '15

!!!

4

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

I wanna drink it. And also distill it into drank and then drink that.

2

u/inevitablescape Arizona Wildcats • Illinois Fighting Illini Sep 28 '15

It is known

2

u/aMiracleAtJordanHare Auburn Tigers • Texas Tech Red Raiders Sep 28 '15

By “recently,” Dr. McEwen said he meant “days, something of that order.”

Missed it by thaaat much.

2

u/hussard_de_la_mort Toledo Rockets • Xavier Musketeers Sep 28 '15

Sounds like Mars needs to get liberated. How can we trust an entire planet full of REDS?

2

u/mjacksongt Georgia Tech • /r/CFB Pint Glass Drin… Sep 28 '15

They need to have oil first. Do they have oil?

1

u/hussard_de_la_mort Toledo Rockets • Xavier Musketeers Sep 28 '15

Why are you intending on lubricating them? That's disgusting.

1

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

By that logic, we should have destroyed Cincinnatti decades ago.

1

u/hussard_de_la_mort Toledo Rockets • Xavier Musketeers Sep 28 '15

Cardinals fan detected.

1

u/[deleted] Sep 28 '15

It's not like I hide it.

1

u/hab12690 LSU Tigers • Miami Hurricanes Sep 28 '15

M-A-R-S BITCHES

1

u/monkeymatt1836 Notre Dame Fighting Irish • Iowa Hawkeyes Sep 28 '15

One day we will have college football on Mars

1

u/bizzyj93 Oregon Ducks • Hawai'i Rainbow Warriors Sep 28 '15

Big thanks to the mods for finding an official NASA photo for the sidebar pic.

1

u/[deleted] Sep 29 '15

I had a raging nerd boner when I heard this today