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NASA Is Using Wet Chemistry to Detect Large Biomolecules on Mars
News from Science Magazine: http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/02/mars-rover-steps-hunt-molecular-signs-life
Quote from the news: ”The controllers of NASA’s Curiosity rover have waited patiently—and perhaps for too long—to launch a key experiment. Tucked in the rover’s belly are nine stainless steel thimbles, each filled with solvent, that are the mission’s best shot for detecting signs of ancient martian life. Now, well into its fifth year on Mars, the rover has reached a mountain thought to be a promising hunting ground, and mission scientists are ready to dump freshly drilled dirt into one of their precious wet chemistry cups. But there’s a hitch. Since early December 2016, Curiosity hasn’t been able to drill.”
“Within the SAM is a wheel containing 74 one-time-use thimbles. Scientists were finally ready to use a wet chemistry cup for the first time when the drill broke.”
