Natural methane on Mars

The source of Mars methane is unknown; its detection is shown here.

The reported presence of methane in the atmosphere of Mars is of interest to many geologists and astrobiologists,[1] as methane may indicate the presence of microbial life on Mars, or a geochemical process such as volcanism or hydrothermal activity.[2][3][4][5][6][7]

Since 2004, trace amounts of methane (range from 60 ppbv to under detection limit (< 0.05 ppbv)) have been reported in various missions and observational studies.[8][9][10][11][12] The source of methane on Mars and the explanation for the enormous discrepancy in the observed methane concentrations are still unknown and are under study.[1][13] Whenever methane is detected, it is rapidly removed from the atmosphere by an efficient, yet unknown process.[14]

  1. ^ a b Yung, Yuk L.; Chen, Pin; Nealson, Kenneth; Atreya, Sushil; Beckett, Patrick; Blank, Jennifer G.; Ehlmann, Bethany; Eiler, John; Etiope, Giuseppe (2018-09-19). "Methane on Mars and Habitability: Challenges and Responses". Astrobiology. 18 (10): 1221–1242. Bibcode:2018AsBio..18.1221Y. doi:10.1089/ast.2018.1917. ISSN 1531-1074. PMC 6205098. PMID 30234380.
  2. ^ "Making Sense of Mars' Methane". Astrobiology Magazine. June 2008. Archived from the original on 2012-05-31.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  3. ^ Steigerwald, Bill (15 January 2009). "Martian Methane Reveals the Red Planet is not a Dead Planet". NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. NASA. Retrieved 24 January 2009.
  4. ^ Howe, K. L.; Gavin, P.; Goodhart, T.; Kral, T. A. (2009). Methane Production by Methanogens in Perchlorate-Supplemented Media (PDF). 40th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference.
  5. ^ Levin, Gilbert V.; Straat, Patricia Ann (3 September 2009). "Methane and life on Mars". Proc. SPIE. Proceedings of SPIE. 7441 (74410D): 74410D. Bibcode:2009SPIE.7441E..0DL. doi:10.1117/12.829183. S2CID 73595154.
  6. ^ Potter, Sean (2018-06-07). "NASA Finds Ancient Organic Material, Mysterious Methane on Mars". NASA. Retrieved 2019-06-06.
  7. ^ Witze, Alexandra (2018-10-25). "Mars scientists edge closer to solving methane mystery". Nature. 563 (7729): 18–19. Bibcode:2018Natur.563...18W. doi:10.1038/d41586-018-07177-4. PMID 30377322. S2CID 256769669.
  8. ^ Formisano, Vittorio; Atreya, Sushil; Encrenaz, Thérèse; Ignatiev, Nikolai; Giuranna, Marco (2004-12-03). "Detection of Methane in the Atmosphere of Mars". Science. 306 (5702): 1758–1761. Bibcode:2004Sci...306.1758F. doi:10.1126/science.1101732. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 15514118. S2CID 13533388.
  9. ^ Mumma, M. J.; Villanueva, G. L.; Novak, R. E.; Hewagama, T.; Bonev, B. P.; DiSanti, M. A.; Mandell, A. M.; Smith, M. D. (2009-02-20). "Strong Release of Methane on Mars in Northern Summer 2003". Science. 323 (5917): 1041–1045. Bibcode:2009Sci...323.1041M. doi:10.1126/science.1165243. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 19150811. S2CID 25083438.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference :36 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Vasavada, Ashwin R.; Zurek, Richard W.; Sander, Stanley P.; Crisp, Joy; Lemmon, Mark; Hassler, Donald M.; Genzer, Maria; Harri, Ari-Matti; Smith, Michael D. (2018-06-08). "Background levels of methane in Mars' atmosphere show strong seasonal variations". Science. 360 (6393): 1093–1096. Bibcode:2018Sci...360.1093W. doi:10.1126/science.aaq0131. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 29880682.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference :37 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ esa. "The methane mystery". European Space Agency. Retrieved 2019-06-07.
  14. ^ Etiope, Giuseppe; Oehler, Dorothy Z. (2019). "Methane spikes, background seasonality and non-detections on Mars: A geological perspective". Planetary and Space Science. 168: 52–61. Bibcode:2019P&SS..168...52E. doi:10.1016/j.pss.2019.02.001. S2CID 127748445.