Translator: Mohamed Anas Moufti Reviewer: Denise RQ
Ten years ago, I moved to the United States.
I was 15 at that time.
As much as I loved space, I had no idea about NASA or what they did.
Today I am 25, and I am here to tell you about a major Mars discovery.
So how does one exactly go
from not knowing anything about NASA to making a major Mars discovery
in ten years?
This is in the remote foothills of Nepal, right next to the Himalayas.
Approximately 60 years ago, my father was born in this place.
If at some point, my father had not decided to move out of here,
chances are I would still be there,
and my chances of doing research in space exploration
would be pretty slim.
Like many others before him, he also decided to embark on a journey
driven by exploration and driven by a quest for better life.
He eventually became a geologist;
and growing up,
I spent many days skipping school and tagging along with my father
to explore the wonders of the Himalayas,
and at night, we were mesmerized by the blue, amazing sky.
See, at that point, and even right now,
I've always been an average student not a genius, not a prodigy.
But nevertheless,
the beautiful view of the landscape of the Himalayas and the night sky
leave a lasting impact in my life,
and I developed a deep passion for exploration.
While in school, while in college,
every action I took was motivated by that passion for exploration.
I worked from labs in physics to planetary science
to quench that passion for exploration and space.
But see, at the same time,
to ensure my bills were paid, I also worked as a clerk,
cleaning bathrooms, and mopping floors.
My point is that when you are driven by passion,
you're not afraid to go that extra mile,
and in the end, that's all the difference we need in life to be successful.
One night, I came back to my planetary research lab
after everyone else had left
and noticed something that would profoundly change my life.
As I sat in front of my dusty old computer
and gazed at the terabytes of data we had from Mars,
one thing caught my eyes.
In two images of the same place on Mars, something had changed;
much like in these images, dark streaks were forming and growing over time.
At that point, I was the first person in the history of humanity
to observe these features,
but I had no idea what they were.
My research colleges and I spent an endless amount of hours
trying to understand these features.
How were they forming on Mars, and what are they?
That entire quest to understand these features
was driven by our love for exploration.
Everything we ended up finding about these features
was telling us that water played a key role in their formation.
However, we did not have that definite evidence.
Fast forward four years, and I am a graduate student;
my passion for space and exploration is strong as ever,
and I decided to do much more intensive research to understand these features.
I decided I would take an unconventional route in data analysis.
It was a risk, but it's a risk worth taking,
because at the end, it ended up giving us that evidence we had been looking for,
The squiggly lines you see on the screens are called spectra,
and in them, you see tiny little dips
that are caused by the presence of molecular water on Mars.
After 80,000 years since humans had started venturing out of Africa,
after 50 years since humans had started studying Mars with spacecraft,
we have finally confirmed the presence of water on Mars.
(Applause)
The findings may have significant implications
in terms of human exploration
and towards our understanding of life in the Universe.
Life as we understand it cannot survive without water,
so the places where we find these streaks are probably presently habitable.
Also, when we eventually go to Mars,
we don't need to bring water with us; it's there.
This image was taken by NASA's Curiosity rover on Mars.
Beyond the dark shadows which are the hills of Gale Crater on Mars,
you see one pale blue dot.
That's home; that's us.
Seven billion people, each unique in their own accord,
call that planet home.
You, I, and everyone we have ever known has lived
on that one tiny, little planet amidst the vast cosmos.
In fact, as Carl Sagan once said, "It is the only home we've ever known."
Out of the seven billion people living on that planet,
I'm not special in any regards.
I'm an average student, I'm a failed wannabe magician,
and I'm a dreamer.
My point is that if someone like me can do this, so can you.
Going along this journey,
I've really figured out the secret to success.
And it is:
yes, passion.
My passion is exploration.
What's yours?
Thank you.
(Applause)