By Aazam
Ancient Mars may have had an atmosphere capable of harboring an underground world full of microbes, French scientists reported Monday
If they existed, these simple life forms would have changed the environment so profoundly
Life—even simple life like microbes—"might actually be the cause of its own demise" according to the researchers' conclusion
Boris Store said that the results are "a little sad, but I think they are also very provocative
He said in an email. "They challenge us to rethink the way a biosphere and its planets interact
He speculated that the hydrogen-gobbling, methane-producing microbes may have thrived just below the surface.
Pahlavan said the French study examined the climate effects of potential microbes, when Mars' atmosphere was dominated by carbon dioxide
"However, their study makes it clear that if life were to exist on Mars," he said in an email, "they would have had a major impact on the current climate
French researchers suggest the unexplored Hellas Planitia, or plain, and the Jezero crater on the northwest edge of Isidis Planitia
Where NASA's Perseverance rover is collecting rocks to return to Earth in a decade