American researchers led by Gilbert Levin confirmed that life still exists on Mars. The research results are published in the journal Astrobiology.
The authors of the work made similar conclusions from the data obtained from two automatic Viking vehicles, which arrived on Mars in 1976. Analysis of soil samples confirms that organic creatures still exist on Mars, and they appeared there millions of years ago.
However, scientists have not yet been able to detect life on the Red Planet, so the assumption may be refuted in the future when the MARS-2020 rover goes to Mars.
“Some of the signs found in the soil of Mars make it clear that the Red Planet is still inhabited. At the very least, we are talking about microorganisms, which certainly exist, if not on the surface, then in the bowels of Mars,”the authors of the study say.
The vehicles "Viking-1" and "Viking-2" landed on the surface of Mars in 1976. To search for organic molecules, both devices were equipped with chromatographs and mass spectrometers. The determination of the chemical components of the soil "Vikings" was carried out by heating the samples and did not find any organic matter, except for chloromethane and dichloromethane molecules. Experts believed that these substances are pollution brought from the Earth - both components are part of the cleaning fluids.