Latest news from Mars

2000/05/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Astronomia

No, Mars Polar Lander haven't found it, they're not the latest news coming from Mars. Despite the resounding failure of the last two probes sent by NASA to Mars, the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) probe is doing a good job spinning around the red planet.

The images sent by the probe indicate the differences between the South and North poles of Mars: The North Pole is almost flat and full of small craters, while in the South Pole craters are larger. The North Pole consists of water and ice and the South Pole, supposedly of carbon oxides (IV) (dry ice), with a layer of a few meters or perhaps 2 or 3 km deep.

These characteristics are representative of the climate and history of the Martian poles. The images sent by the MGS also show the interior of the planet: the northern plains accumulated abundant water in their day, but the high temperatures and rapid cooling created underground channels, which brought water long ago. The thickness of the outer layer of Mars is about 80 km south and about 35 km north. The change of thickness caused the mountains of the north, which controlled the old streams of water. Millions of years ago there was enough water on the red planet to fill an ocean.