[Possibility of the nonbiological binding of CO2 and CO by the components of Martian soil].

A mixture of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide was irradiated in the presence of limonite and hydrogen peroxide at 340 nm. As has been demonstrated by gas chromatography, chemical reactions occurring in this case yield organic compounds which could be synthesized in the experiments conducted by the Viking stations. Consequently, this method cannot discriminate between the chemical and biological processes which possibly accounted for positive signals registered in the experiments of the Viking stations.