Nasa's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter reveals large amounts of water ice on Mars
Category: Health, Science & Technology
Via: dignitatem-societatis • 6 years ago • 8 comments
New HiRISE Images Show 3D Structure of Martian Ice Sheets
New images from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter reveal never-before-observed details about Martian ice sheets, including that some begin just a few feet below Mars’ surface and extend to depths greater than 300 feet (100 m). The findings are published in the journal Science .
“There is ice under roughly a third of the Martian surface, which records the recent geologic history of Mars,” said lead author Dr. Colin Dundas , a research geologist with the Astrogeology Science Center at the U.S. Geological Survey.
“What we’ve seen here are cross-sections through the ice that give us a 3D view with more detail than ever before.”
“Having this degree of detail is an important contribution to the growing body of knowledge about conditions on Mars.”
Although water ice deposits are known to exist from previous Mars missions, Dr. Dundas and co-authors analyzed the vertical structure and thickness of the exposed subsurface ice sheets using high-resolution imagery and topography from MRO’s HiRISE instrument.
They examined north and south pole-facing erosional slopes, known as scarps, in eight locations around Mars, all in the mid-latitudes.
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Day temps can sometimes reach 70 F in the mid-latitudes. Perfect weather for a little ice harvesting. At night it might drop to 100 below, but still... Martian colony here we come.
Well, someday, maybe.
Cool seed.
Have you read Kim Stanley Robinson's Mars trilogy, about the terraforming / colonization of Mars? Massive buried icesheets are an essential element to the technical side.
Nope. Haven't read it.
I did read Andy Weir's 'The Martian' just before the movie was released, though. And I watched a miniseries called 'Mars' (I think) on NatGeo last year. It seems like Mars was in vogue a couple of years ago. I remember thinking quite a bit about it back then, and 2 things always seemed to top the list of needs: water (for more than just drinking, it can be a source of oxygen for breathing and hydrogen for fuel), and some serious radiation protection.
And the gravity is low, only like .38 G or something. I remember wondering if that would be a health and development problem for people living and reproducing there, but offhand I can't remember if I ever found the answer.
Correction: Temps get near 70 at the equator, not the mid-latitudes, but the mid-latitudes still aren't the polar regions...
Interesting seed, thanks.
Very interesting and enlightening information. Thank you for sharing it with us. I myself will never live long enough to go there, and even if I was, not sure I would be interested in going there. My high adventurous side has slowly waned and these days I find my adventures a bit closer to home. (grin)
water ice deposits are known to exist from previous Mars missions
I have to wonder, what flavor....
I think I read somewhere else that these surface sheets are supposed to be fresh water, but distillation could get clean drinking water out of it even if it wasn't.