Tag Archives: CO2

Small amounts of CO2 can get Mars gullies flowing

[Editor’s note: From a paper by Tjalling de Haas and six co-authors recently published in the Journal of Geophysical Research.] Initiation and Flow Conditions of Contemporary Flows in Martian Gullies • We use RAMMS to back calculate initial and flow … Continue reading

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Weathering on early Mars bad for forming carbonates

[Editor’s note: From a paper by Fabien Baron and three co-authors recently published in the Journal of Geophysical Research.] New Constraints on Early Mars Weathering Conditions From an Experimental Approach on Crust Simulants • Chemical weathering in mildly acidic conditions … Continue reading

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Comet chemistry suggests way to get breathable oxygen on Mars

Science fiction stories are chock full of terraforming schemes and oxygen generators for a very good reason—we humans need molecular oxygen (O2) to breathe, and space is essentially devoid of it. Even on other planets with thick atmospheres, O2 is … Continue reading

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Mars hasn’t enough CO2 for terraforming

A new study of the quantity of carbon dioxide on Mars has compiled a planet-wide inventory of the CO2 it holds in all its accessible reservoirs: atmosphere, ice, and locked up in surface carbonate rocks and other potential sources. The … Continue reading

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Curiosity findings from Yellowknife Bay sharpen CO2 paradox of ancient Mars climate

Mars scientists are wrestling with a problem. Ample evidence says ancient Mars was sometimes wet, with water flowing and pooling on the planet’s surface. Yet, the ancient sun was about one-third less warm and climate modelers struggle to produce scenarios … Continue reading

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Was nitrogen in the early Mars atmosphere a key to ancient habitability?

Scientists have long suspected that ancient Mars had a thicker atmosphere and temperatures warmer and far more habitable than at present. But modelers have difficulties making the numbers come out right,

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