Life on Mars: evaluation of the evidence within Martian meteorites ALH84001, Nakhla, and Shergotty

被引:68
作者
Gibson, EK
McKay, DS
Thomas-Keprta, KL
Wentworth, SJ
Westall, F
Steele, A
Romanek, CS
Bell, MS
Toporski, J
机构
[1] NASA, Lyndon B Johnson Space Ctr, Houston, TX 77058 USA
[2] Lockheed Martin Corp, Houston, TX 77058 USA
[3] Univ Portsmouth, Portsmouth, Hants, England
[4] Univ Georgia, Savannah River Ecol Lab, Aiken, SC 29802 USA
基金
美国国家航空航天局;
关键词
D O I
10.1016/S0301-9268(00)00122-4
中图分类号
P [天文学、地球科学];
学科分类号
07 ;
摘要
Analyses both support and are in opposition to the hypothesis that the Martian meteorite ALH84001 contains evidence for possible biogenic activity on Mars. New observations in two additional Martian meteorites, Nakhla (1.3 Ga old) and Shergotty (300-165 Ma old) indicate possible biogenic features. Features in the three Martian meteorites compare favorably with the accepted criteria for terrestrial microfossils and evidence for early life on the Earth. There is strong evidence for the presence of indigenous reduced carbon, biogenic magnetite, and the low-temperature formation of carbonate globules. The morphological similarities between terrestrial microfossils, biofilms, and the features found in the three Martian meteorites are intriguing but have not been conclusively proven. Every investigation must recognize the possibility of terrestrial contamination of the meteorites, whether or not the meteorites are Martian. The search for evidence of ancient life in Martian meteorites has emphasized the difficulties confronting the scientific community with the respect to the positive identification of evidence of past biogenic activity. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
引用
收藏
页码:15 / 34
页数:20
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