Mars subsurface ice is patchy
Posted: Thu, May 3, 2007, 7:32 AM ET (1132 GMT)
The depths below the surface where water ice exists near the polar regions of Mars depends strongly on the properties of the surface, scientists reported this week. In a paper published in Thursday's issue of the journal Nature, scientists analyzed infrared images of the polar regions of the planet taken by NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft to measure the changes in temperature of the surface, a measure of how close to the surface the thermally-stable layer of water ice lies. Researchers found that the ice was much closer to the surface in dusty regions, while much farther below the surface in rocky areas the "pump" heat into subsurface layers. The results means that NASA's Phoenix spacecraft, scheduled for launch later this year to land in the planet's far-northern regions, might find differences in the depth of the water ice layer in spots as little as a meter apart.
The depths below the surface where water ice exists near the polar regions of Mars depends strongly on the properties of the surface, scientists reported this week. In a paper published in Thursday's issue of the journal Nature, scientists analyzed infrared images of the polar regions of the planet taken by NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft to measure the changes in temperature of the surface, a measure of how close to the surface the thermally-stable layer of water ice lies. Researchers found that the ice was much closer to the surface in dusty regions, while much farther below the surface in rocky areas the "pump" heat into subsurface layers. The results means that NASA's Phoenix spacecraft, scheduled for launch later this year to land in the planet's far-northern regions, might find differences in the depth of the water ice layer in spots as little as a meter apart.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
Starship explodes during preparations for static-fire test
Posted: Sun, Jun 22 6:52 AM ET (1052 GMT) |
|
news links
|
|
Saturday, June 28
Sierra Space Opens Solar Power Plant To Support Defense Work
Aviation Week — 6:57 am ET (1057 GMT) Falcon 9 launch of Starlink satellites scheduled for Saturday morning from Vandenberg SFB
KEYT-TV Santa Barbara, CA — 6:55 am ET (1055 GMT) UK Space Command rises to meet the challenges on the frontier beyond planet Earth
The National (UK) — 6:54 am ET (1054 GMT) Space Systems Command Set to Strengthen Operational Environment with Enhanced Global Weather Sensing
US Space Force — 6:54 am ET (1054 GMT) Col. Brian Chatman Named New Commander of Space Launch Delta 45, Director of the Eastern Range
Space Coast (FL) Daily — 6:53 am ET (1053 GMT) |
