The mystery of methane on Mars has been wafting around for decades. Now, using data gathered by the ESA's Mars Express orbiter and NASA's Curiosity rover on the ground, a new study has not only confirmed that the gas is there, but identified its likely source. Here on Earth, methane is released into the atmosphere in large quantities by all sorts of organisms (most notably livestock), but can also bubble up from geological sources. The problem is, it's an even more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Luckily, it also tends to dissipate pretty quickly. Those two factors make methane d...
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The mystery of methane on Mars has been wafting around for decades. Now, using data gathered by the ESA's Mars Express orbiter and NASA's Curiosity rover on the ground, a new study has not only confirmed that the gas is there, but identified its likely source. Here on Earth, methane is released into the atmosphere in large quantities by all sorts of organisms (most notably livestock), but can also bubble up from geological sources. The problem is, it's an even more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Luckily, it also tends to dissipate pretty quickly. Those two factors make methane d...
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