Mars tagged posts

MDRS Expedition 143 Commander Paul Knightly walking through stands of Ericameria nauseosa and Epehdra viridis while wearing a simulated spacesuit. Credit: Paul C. Sokoloff; CC-BY 4.0

Future Martian explorers might not need to leave the Earth to prepare themselves for life on the Red Planet. The Mars Society have built an analogue research site in Utah, USA, which simulates the conditions on our neighbouring planet. Practicing the methods needed to collect biological samples while wearing spacesuits, a team of Canadian scientists have studied the diverse local flora...

Google Earth, Cornell University, Planetary Space Institute Thermal image showing ice-rich lobes (outlined by yellow line), which we interpret to be the remnants of tsunami waves that transitioned into slurry ice-rich flows as they propagated under extremely cold climatic conditions. Upslope direction of flow indicated by white arrow. The lobe is about 250 km in length, or the distance between Baltimore and New York City. Credit: Image courtesy of Cornell University; This view was produced using Google Earth

The geologic shape of what were once shorelines through Mars’ northern plains convinces scientists that 2 large meteorites – hitting the planet millions of years apart – triggered a pair of mega-tsunamis...

Figure 6 from Nikitczuk et al. Credit: GSA Bulletin and Nikitczuk et al.

Tubular microtunnels believed to be the trace fossils formed by microbes inhabiting volcanic rock interiors have only been reported in oceanic and subglacial settings. This is the first observation of such features in basaltic volcanic glass erupted in a continental lake environment, the Fort Rock volcanic field. As a result, the record of subsurface microbial activity in the form of endolithic microborings is prospectively expanded. Our understanding of the range of environments and conditions that microtunnels can form in is enhanced along with our knowledge of potentially habitable environments on Earth and beyond.

The Fort Rock volcanic field has analogous characteristics to locations found on Mars such as Gale an...

Comparison of morphologies formed by the flow of liquid water on Earth and on Mars. Credit: Marion Massé

At present, liquid water on Mars only exists in small quantities as a boiling liquid, and only during the warmest time of day in summer. Its role has therefore been considered insignificant until now. However, an international team including scientists has now shown that even though water that emerges onto the surface of Mars immediately begins to boil, it creates an unstable, turbulent flow that can eject sediment and cause dry avalanches. The flow of small amounts of a boiling liquid therefore significantly alters the surface...