Mars: Our Celestial Companion
By Adam J Guterman
Mars is one of our closest planetary neighbors and most visible. It has captured the imagination of many astronomers for centuries. Mars was once seen as the fiery red planet, which dubbed it the God of War in ancient Roman mythology. In reality, the reddish appearance is actually due to iron oxide, and the planet is in fact extremely cold. Mars was first mapped-out in 1877 by Italian astronomer, Giovanni Schiaparelli. He first noted that channels were etched in the Martian topography. In the early Twentieth century astronomer, Percival Lowell, looking through his telescope saw the linear shapes carved into the planet’s surface and concluded that the lines were canals made by a race of Martians. That later proved to be incorrect, but ever since then Mars seems to capture the imaginations of human beings on earth. Mars has made a large impact on our present culture: science fiction writers feature it in their stories, movies are made about it, and Orson Wells actually created panic in parts of the 1930’s United States with his radio broadcast of “The War of the Worlds,” which featured invaders from that planet (Hearle, 2004).
Currently, Mars is attracting much attention from NASA as increasingly more missions are being performed and data sent back. According to Craig Freudenrich, the missions since the early 1970s: Mariner 9, Viking 1, Viking 2, and Pathfinder have toured the planet, sampled the minerals, surveyed the terrain, extensively mapped the surface, and sent back compelling pictures of its dry and dusty surface. The surface is divided into three parts: the Southern Highlands, the Northern Plains, and the Polar Regions. Its polar caps are made mostly of frozen carbon dioxide with a small amount of water ice. It also has a very weak magnetic field. The crust is thin and not broken into plates like the earth (Freudenrich, 2005).
Judging by the news of the last few years it seems that human beings are planning on getting there sooner or later. It is one of our nearest neighboring planets, and makes it a good choice for exploration. Our other closest neighbor is Venus. Unfortunately, Venus is not a good choice for human exploration or habitation as it has an extremely hot and toxic atmosphere; life could not last there long. Mars on the other hand is relatively less harsh and more accessible. Both planets are rocky and solid. They are part of a group known as the terrestrial planets (Hearle, 2004).
A comparison of Mars to Earth:
Earth:
• is the third planet from the sun.
• has one moon.
• is about twice the size of Mars.
• has a day lasting about 24 hours.
• has one year lasting 365 Days, Mars is about twice as long.
• has an average surface temperature that ranges between freezing and boiling water.
• has a climate that supports life.
• has a large amount of oxygen.
• has a larger atmosphere compared to Mars.
• has plate tectonics.
• has magnetism.
• has heat radiating from within its core.
• has a Greenhouse effect that captures solar radiation and holds heat from the atmosphere.
• has an ozone layer – Mars has none.
• has active volcanoes – Mars’ are inactive.
• has an ocean of water that covers more surface area than land.
Mars:
• is the fourth planet from the sun.
• has two moons, Deimos and Phobos.
• is little more than half the size of earth.
• has a mass of about one-ninth of earths.
• has a day lasting 24 hours and 37.4 minutes.
• completes an orbit of the sun in nearly two earth years.
• has temperatures ranging between 30°C in the day and -130°C at night (at the equator).
• does not have a climate that supports life (or at least not yet confirmed).
• has a very thin atmosphere, much smaller than earth’s.
• has a large amount of carbon dioxide, but very minute amounts of oxygen.
• has currently no oceans or free flowing water.
• has ice in its polar caps.
• has been thought to have an ocean long ago.
• is dry and dusty with very fast winds and no clouds.
• has great canyons 2,400 miles long called the Valles Marineris, which is greater than the distance from New York to Los Angeles.
• has the highest mountain in the solar system. An inactive volcano, Olympic Mons rises 16 miles above its surrounding base, compared to the biggest volcano on earth (Mauna Loa, Hawaii), which rises 6 miles above the ocean floor.
It has been speculated that Mars one day could be made habitable. Maybe sometime in the future, humans could colonize Mars and make it their second home. According to Kevin Bonsor, Mars could be transformed into a more earth-like climate through a process called terraforming. That would involve transforming the planet by warming it and creating an atmosphere. Some of the proposed methods include: large orbital mirrors to reflect sunlight and heat the surface, Greenhouse gas producing factories to trap solar radiation, smashing ammonia-heavy asteroids into the planet to raise the greenhouse gas level. An ambitious undertaking, it could take several decades or centuries to complete that process. NASA is also working on a solar sail propulsion system that involves the use of large mirrors to harness the sun’s power. It could propel a craft through space and makes a long distance space trip more efficient (Bonsor, 2005).
It seems that a lot of things are in the works at NASA involving the investigation of the planets. Mars, being one of our closest neighbors makes it a logical first choice for visiting. There are quite a few differences between our planets but also a lot of similarities. Can it be made habitable? Maybe. Mars seems to captures people’s imaginations, and inspires them to want to go to the next step.
References
Hearle, A. (Director), 2004. Eyewitness: Planets. [DVD series]. Wynnewood: Schlessinger Media.
Freudenrich C. (2005). How Mars Works. Retrieved, August 6, 2005, from http://science.howstuffworks.com/mars.htm/printable
Bonsor K. (2005). How Terraforming Mars Will Work. Retrieved, August 6, 2005, from http://science.howstuffworks.com/terraforming.htm/printable
Hewitt P., Suchoki J., & Hewitt L. (2004). Conceptual Physical Science. (3rd ed.). San Francisco: Addison Wesley.
Mars is one of our closest planetary neighbors and most visible. It has captured the imagination of many astronomers for centuries. Mars was once seen as the fiery red planet, which dubbed it the God of War in ancient Roman mythology. In reality, the reddish appearance is actually due to iron oxide, and the planet is in fact extremely cold. Mars was first mapped-out in 1877 by Italian astronomer, Giovanni Schiaparelli. He first noted that channels were etched in the Martian topography. In the early Twentieth century astronomer, Percival Lowell, looking through his telescope saw the linear shapes carved into the planet’s surface and concluded that the lines were canals made by a race of Martians. That later proved to be incorrect, but ever since then Mars seems to capture the imaginations of human beings on earth. Mars has made a large impact on our present culture: science fiction writers feature it in their stories, movies are made about it, and Orson Wells actually created panic in parts of the 1930’s United States with his radio broadcast of “The War of the Worlds,” which featured invaders from that planet (Hearle, 2004).Currently, Mars is attracting much attention from NASA as increasingly more missions are being performed and data sent back. According to Craig Freudenrich, the missions since the early 1970s: Mariner 9, Viking 1, Viking 2, and Pathfinder have toured the planet, sampled the minerals, surveyed the terrain, extensively mapped the surface, and sent back compelling pictures of its dry and dusty surface. The surface is divided into three parts: the Southern Highlands, the Northern Plains, and the Polar Regions. Its polar caps are made mostly of frozen carbon dioxide with a small amount of water ice. It also has a very weak magnetic field. The crust is thin and not broken into plates like the earth (Freudenrich, 2005).
Judging by the news of the last few years it seems that human beings are planning on getting there sooner or later. It is one of our nearest neighboring planets, and makes it a good choice for exploration. Our other closest neighbor is Venus. Unfortunately, Venus is not a good choice for human exploration or habitation as it has an extremely hot and toxic atmosphere; life could not last there long. Mars on the other hand is relatively less harsh and more accessible. Both planets are rocky and solid. They are part of a group known as the terrestrial planets (Hearle, 2004).
A comparison of Mars to Earth:
Earth:
• is the third planet from the sun.
• has one moon.
• is about twice the size of Mars.
• has a day lasting about 24 hours.
• has one year lasting 365 Days, Mars is about twice as long.
• has an average surface temperature that ranges between freezing and boiling water.
• has a climate that supports life.
• has a large amount of oxygen.
• has a larger atmosphere compared to Mars.
• has plate tectonics.
• has magnetism.
• has heat radiating from within its core.
• has a Greenhouse effect that captures solar radiation and holds heat from the atmosphere.
• has an ozone layer – Mars has none.
• has active volcanoes – Mars’ are inactive.
• has an ocean of water that covers more surface area than land.
Mars:
• is the fourth planet from the sun.
• has two moons, Deimos and Phobos.
• is little more than half the size of earth.
• has a mass of about one-ninth of earths.
• has a day lasting 24 hours and 37.4 minutes.
• completes an orbit of the sun in nearly two earth years.
• has temperatures ranging between 30°C in the day and -130°C at night (at the equator).
• does not have a climate that supports life (or at least not yet confirmed).
• has a very thin atmosphere, much smaller than earth’s.
• has a large amount of carbon dioxide, but very minute amounts of oxygen.
• has currently no oceans or free flowing water.
• has ice in its polar caps.
• has been thought to have an ocean long ago.
• is dry and dusty with very fast winds and no clouds.
• has great canyons 2,400 miles long called the Valles Marineris, which is greater than the distance from New York to Los Angeles.
• has the highest mountain in the solar system. An inactive volcano, Olympic Mons rises 16 miles above its surrounding base, compared to the biggest volcano on earth (Mauna Loa, Hawaii), which rises 6 miles above the ocean floor.
It has been speculated that Mars one day could be made habitable. Maybe sometime in the future, humans could colonize Mars and make it their second home. According to Kevin Bonsor, Mars could be transformed into a more earth-like climate through a process called terraforming. That would involve transforming the planet by warming it and creating an atmosphere. Some of the proposed methods include: large orbital mirrors to reflect sunlight and heat the surface, Greenhouse gas producing factories to trap solar radiation, smashing ammonia-heavy asteroids into the planet to raise the greenhouse gas level. An ambitious undertaking, it could take several decades or centuries to complete that process. NASA is also working on a solar sail propulsion system that involves the use of large mirrors to harness the sun’s power. It could propel a craft through space and makes a long distance space trip more efficient (Bonsor, 2005).
It seems that a lot of things are in the works at NASA involving the investigation of the planets. Mars, being one of our closest neighbors makes it a logical first choice for visiting. There are quite a few differences between our planets but also a lot of similarities. Can it be made habitable? Maybe. Mars seems to captures people’s imaginations, and inspires them to want to go to the next step.
References
Hearle, A. (Director), 2004. Eyewitness: Planets. [DVD series]. Wynnewood: Schlessinger Media.
Freudenrich C. (2005). How Mars Works. Retrieved, August 6, 2005, from http://science.howstuffworks.com/mars.htm/printable
Bonsor K. (2005). How Terraforming Mars Will Work. Retrieved, August 6, 2005, from http://science.howstuffworks.com/terraforming.htm/printable
Hewitt P., Suchoki J., & Hewitt L. (2004). Conceptual Physical Science. (3rd ed.). San Francisco: Addison Wesley.
posted by Adam Guterman at 7:18 PM
<< Home