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Isotopic carbon10/18/2023 ![]() ![]() On Earth, depletion of heavy carbon often signals life, as several biological processes preferentially use lighter isotopes of carbon. The researchers suggested a few possible causes, ranging from interstellar dust clouds periodically raining down on Mars to ancient microbes burping methane. Several of the 3.5-billion-year-old deposits sampled by Curiosity at its landing site, Gale Crater, contained surprisingly low amounts of heavy carbon. The new carbon measurements help clarify a puzzling finding from NASA’s Curiosity rover last year. NOMAD watched as the Sun’s rays traversed Mars’ atmosphere, a perspective that revealed the amounts, identities and carbon content of the gases present. Shohei and colleagues analysed data gathered across eight TGO orbits in March-April 2022 by the Belgian-led NOMAD (Nadir and Occultation for MArs Discovery) instrument. We’ve now applied the same approach to the carbon found in Mars’ atmospheric carbon monoxide, something we were only able to do thanks to TGO’s exquisite sensitivity and ability to profile many different molecules.” " In 2021, TGO mapped the ratio of ‘normal’ to ‘heavy’ hydrogen in Mars’ atmospheric water vapour to create a ‘chronometer’ with which to trace the history and evolution of the planet’s water. “Measuring the carbon isotopic ratio in carbon monoxide is a powerful way to understand where the planet’s organic matter came from and reveal Mars’ history of habitability,” says Shohei Aoki of the University of Tokyo and Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy, and lead author of a new paper published in the Planetary Science Journal. ![]()
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