re: NY Times: Pentagon’s UFO Program - aerospace/esoteric/quantum mechanics/future

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Giant Caves on Alien Worlds Could Be Havens For Life, Scientists Say
EVAN GOUGH, UNIVERSE TODAY 18 JULY 2020

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These lava tubes are turning out to be a very desirable target for exploration on other worlds, just as they are here on Earth.

Lava tubes are formed when the surface of flowing lava cools and hardens, but the lava underneath keeps flowing. It's kind of like a freezing river that forms an ice layer on top while the water underneath keeps flowing. The flowing lava can remain hot and drain out, leaving a cave. This happens on Earth, and can be both a delight and a challenge for spelunkers.

But it's also happened on the Moon, and on Mars, and maybe anywhere else where there's been volcanic activity. Lava tubes are unique environments. They may provide a shelter for life, or evidence of microbial life in the past, and they may contain easily observed records of geological activity.

This is the main idea behind an article titled 'Core Concept: Lava tubes may be havens for ancient alien life and future human explorers'. The author of the article is Sid Perkins, a science journalist who specializes in Earth Sciences, and who also writes about planetary sciences.

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The first evidence of lava tubes on Mars came from NASA's Viking Orbiter. At the volcano Alba Mons, in the Tharsus region of Mars, Viking's camera captured an image of a long tube shape extruded above the surface of the volcano's flank. This is almost undeniably a lava tube.

Mars at one time in its past was wet and warm, and may have hosted life. Over time, it was stripped of its atmosphere and its water, and became frigid. But if there was life there, it may have had time to "migrate" to the only remaining niches where it could survive. On Mars, that might mean lava tubes.

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"If Mars ever hosted life, it may have moved into such refugia as the planet evolved and surface conditions became increasingly harsh," Perkins wrote in his article. "Indeed, some researchers suggest that microbial life may yet hang on in the Red Planet's underground havens. "

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The walls of lava tubes might hold all kinds of evidence of the history of the world they're on that's simply unattainable any other way. When the Apollo astronauts visited the Moon, they never drilled deeper than about 2.9 meters (9.5 ft.) But the walls of skylights and tubes on the Moon can be tens of meters thick. Mars will be similar, maybe even more exposed.

Distinct geological layers will be exposed to easy study. The walls of lava tubes could show evidence of periods of lava flow, evidence of periods of intense meteor impacts, and more. Examining these walls can shed light on Earth's history too.

Earth is a very active planet, and lots of ancient evidence is simply erased by all the geological activity and erosion. If lava tube walls on the Moon show evidence of sustained periods of meteor impacts - like a well defined layer of pulverized rock - that layer can be dated. With that evidence, we can conclude the same thing happened on Earth, at the same time.

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