Olympus Mons

Back in a former life, I was really into radio and music. Such an existence calls for many lists of rankings: "Best albums of 2004", "All time greatest soul singers", "Worst album covers of the 1980s". And, although I love a list as much as the next person, I tend to find lists appalling. Why? Well, mostly because no "Top list" of anything is accurate, and even worse, most of the time they're put together to generate controversy. "Wait until they see I listed Wade Boggs as the best third basemen in history!" You know, that sort of thing. Anyway, much to my surprise (chagrin?), I recently an…

A computer model of the formation of Olympus Mons (a big giant mountain on Mars) indicates that this geological formation should contain pockets of water. The scientists explained that their finding is more implication than revelation. "What we were analyzing was the structure of Olympus Mons, why it's shaped the way it is," said McGovern, an adjunct assistant professor of Earth science and staff scientist at the NASA-affiliated Lunar and Planetary Institute. "What we found has implications for life - but implications are what go at the end of a paper." This water would be liquid. Warm, in…