Mars, the Planet

QUESTION:
What is the approximate age of the canals on Mars?

ANSWER:
Hi!
Well, I think when you say "canals", you actually mean "channels" on Mars. These channels, which were probably formed by flowing water, melting ice, flowing lava, or tectonic forces, are very old. Scientists think that these channels probably formed about 3 billion years ago, when the climate on Mars may have been very different. Thank you for the great question!

Deanne Rogers
Graduate Student
Mars Space Flight Facility
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
What type of weather is there on Mars and how does it affect sending landing vehicles to Mars?

Chris
McDowell Intermediate High School
Millcreek School District
Erie, PA

ANSWER:
Dear Chris,

This is a great question. There is a lot of weather on Mars! I don't know if you've heard of the dust storms that happen on Mars, but they are the most obvious form of weather. These storms happen when it is summer at the south pole. The air gets warm in the summer sun and then the wind gets strong enough to pick up dust. The dust is even warmer than the air, and when blown up into the atmosphere it heats the air up even more. This process can sometimes build up into global scale storms. Dust in the air hides the surface so we've been able to observe these dust storms for years with telescopic observations, but this last season we observed one up close and personal with a satellite in Mars orbit.

There are other forms of weather such as clouds, fog, dust devils, and high winds. Winds near the polar caps are especially strong.

The weather affects the design of landers, where we can land vehicles, and what type of power sources we can use. Solar powered landers can not operate very long on the surface of Mars because the dust from storms and winds will coat the solar cells and keep them from getting energy from the sun. We also have to design landers that can withstand the winds and wind blown dust and sands on the surface.

Amy Knudson
Research Associate
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Is there any evidence that Mars was a different color 10 million years ago?

What could have caused that color?

ANSWER:
Hi! Great question!

Well, 10 million years ago, the color of Mars was probably similar to the color it is now (sort of a red-yellow-orange color). However, it is very likely that maybe a billion years ago. The color could have been very different. The evidence for this is all of the lava flows that we can see on the surface of Mars. If you've ever looked at lava flows on Earth, (maybe you've seen pictures of Hawaii), you know that once those lava flows cool down, they are black. So on Mars, those lava flows may once have been black. But what happens is, as those lava flows are been exposed to air for a very long time, a chemical reaction occurs between the lava and the atmosphere. This reaction produces a red coating on the lava (this happens on earth, too). More and more of this red coating forms with time.

Also, Mars may be a much brighter red than it was originally. This is because of all of the very small dust particles on Mars. If you take a black rock and grind it up into very fine sand or dust, you will notice that the dust is no longer black! It is actually white.

So, a few billion years ago, Mars was probably very dark in color, because of all the fresh lava flows. But over time, it became redder and brighter, because of the coatings and dust forming.

Sincerely,

Deanne Rogers
Graduate Student
Mars Space Flight Facility
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Are there any magnetic fields on Mars?

If so what caused them and could they be used as sources of energy?

ANSWER:
Currently there is no global magnetic field detectable on Mars. However, there was a magnetometer on board the Mars Global Surveyor that got to Mars in 1997. The magnetometer measured magnetic signatures in the rocks on the surface. There are some really strange magnetic patterns in the rocks there - which may indicate that there once was a global magnetic field. The only way we know to get aligned magnetic patterns in rocks is to have a global magnetic field at the time that the rocks were formed.

Now, how do you get a global magnetic field? The way that we think that happens is to have a liquid metallic core inside the planet. As that hot metal moves around, it moves electric charge around, and the movement of that charge produces a magnetic field. So Mars may once have had a liquid layer or core inside it. Over the billions of years since formation it has lost heat and cooled down until the core solidified and stopped producing a magnetic field.

Current technologies have not made use of magnetic fields as energy sources, but it is quite possible that those technologies could be developed in the future.

Amy Knudson
Research Associate
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
How did Earth end up with a nitrogen/oxygen atmosphere instead of a carbon dioxide atmosphere like Mars?

From: Natica Robinson
8th Grade
Charleston Middle School
Charleston, IL

ANSWER:
Natica, the oxygen in our atmosphere was generated from plants early in the earth's history. Recall that plants take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen through photosynthesis.Nitrogen on earth is from volcanic eruptions however, the nitrogen in the soil is bound to compounds by nitrogen fixing bacteria. So life is important to creating our modern atmosphere that we depend on to survive.

Dr. James W. Rice, Jr.
Mars Odyssey (THEMIS) Space Flight Facility
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Do the canals lead from the volcanic craters? Were they somehow formed by them?

ANSWER:
That's a very good question! We often see features on Mars coming out of craters or volcanoes. We're careful not to call them canals, though, because that implies that something intelligent created them. We often see "gullies" coming out of the sides of craters that were perhaps formed by flowing water. We also see channels on the flanks of volcanoes that were most likely formed by lava flows. There are all kinds of other channels all over the surface of Mars that were either formed by flowing water, either above or below ground. We believe that most of these channels are very old (billions of years!!!) because today, liquid water can't exist at the surface of Mars.

Tim Glotch
Graduate Research Assistant
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
How strong is the gravitational force on Mars?

ANSWER:
This is a good question. Mars is smaller than the Earth, so the gravity that it produces is less. The gravity on Earth pulls on you at 9.8 meters per second, but if you were on Mars the gravity would pull on you at only 3.7 meters per second which is 0.4 times that of Earth. You would weigh a little less than half of what you weigh on Earth. On Mars you could jump higher and throw things farther!

Amy Knudson
Research Associate
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
If we could get people to Mars, would Olympus Mons and other volcanoes be dangerous?

ANSWER:
This is a great question. Olympus Mons and the other huge volcanoes on Mars are some of the youngest features on the surface. We know that they are young because there are very few craters on their surfaces. However, we don't know if these volcanoes are still active or if they are long dead. This is one of the things that we're looking at with the Infrared images from Odyssey. If the volcanoes are still active, we would expect to see some high temperatures on their surfaces.

However, even if the volcanoes are active, these types of volcanoes probably wouldn't be very dangerous to people. They are predominantly shield volcanoes, like those in Hawaii and produce lavas that would be fairly easy to avoid. The volcanoes that are far more dangerous are the ones that explode violently, and all the volcanoes that might have been explosive on Mars are ancient. We're pretty sure that they are no longer active.

Amy Knudson
Research Associate
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Does Mars have more of a flat surface or a rough bumpy surface?

ANSWER:
Excellent question!

Mars actually has both bumpy and flat surfaces, which makes sense, because it would be hard for an entire planet to look exactly the same all over.

Most of the northern hemisphere, called the "Northern Lowlands" is very flat and there are only a few rocks scattered over the surface. There is a lot of dust covering the surface on this part of the planet.

On the other hand, most of the southern hemisphere, called the "Southern Highlands" is a very rough and bumpy surface. This part of Mars is very old (several billion years), and is heavily cratered. One more interesting thing about the Southern Highlands is that we see lots of channels running over the surface, which means there was probably water there at one point in time! The main mission of Odyssey is to look for other areas where water was (or still is!) present, and also, to help us understand why there are different types of surfaces all over the planet.

Tim Glotch
Graduate Research Assistant
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Are any of the volcanoes on Mars still active?

ANSWER:
We do not know if any volcanoes are still active on Mars. What we do know is that there is evidence for very young volcanism on Mars. Pictures from the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft have shown lava flows that have almost no craters on them. On Mars older surfaces have more craters and younger surfaces have fewer craters and we can date a surface by counting the number of craters. So we have very young lava flows on Mars, which indicates that volcanoes could still be active. We have not seen any actual volcanic activity, however. We hope to see evidence for this someday.

Joshua L. Bandfield
Postdoctoral Research Associate
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

QUESTION:
What is the temperature of the planet below the surface?

ANSWER:
The temperature of Mars below the surface is generally something in-between the daytime surface temperature and the nighttime surface temperature. It is usually below freezing. So you can not use the subsurface as an energy source. There is, however, a possibility for local energy sources such as hydrothermal systems. If these local heat sources are present, they could very well be used as an energy source.

Joshua L. Bandfield
Postdoctoral Research Associate
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

QUESTION:
Is there any carbon on Mars?

ANSWER:
Very good question! Carbon does exist on Mars in many different forms. The atmosphere is mainly composed of carbon dioxide. The polar caps are primarily frozen carbon dioxide (also known as dry ice). Currently, scientist are looking for carbon minerals, called carbonates, on the martian surface.

Laura Mehall
Graduate Research Assistant
Mars Space Flight Facility
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Could it be possible to grow vegetation on Mars? Is the soil like that on Earth?

ANSWER:
It is not possible to grow vegetation on Mars right now. Mars gets very cold at night -80 to -100 degrees centigrade. There is also only sub surface ice on Mars near the polar regions. The rest of the surface is covered with dust and rocks. If we were to grow anything on Mars, we would need to have shelter that would allow for the same environmental conditions and soil that we have here on Earth for vegetation.

Chris Shinohara
2001 Mars Odyssey Gamma Ray Spectrometer
Project Manager
Department of Planetary Sciences and
Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
University of Arizona

QUESTION:
What are the holes on Mars?
Hannah

ANSWER:
Our research so far indicates that the holes we have observed are craters caused by the impact of debris from space, such as meteorites, on the surface of Mars. These have occurred over a long period of time.

Larry Bryant
Systems and Operations Engineer
2001 Mars Odyssey Mission
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory

QUESTION:
Is Mars in an Ice Age and if so, could there be life buried underneath the ice?

ANSWER:
Mars is indeed in an ice age, although the length of this ice age is much longer that what the ice ages that we have had on Earth. There are places underneath the surface where the conditions are present where the water will be liquid rather than ice. Life can survive where this liquid water is present. We don't know if the life is actually there, but we do know that it could survive in some areas underground.

Joshua L. Bandfield
Postdoctoral Research Associate
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

QUESTION:
Is there any carbon on Mars?

ANSWER:
Yes it does! Mars has carbon dioxide (CO₂) frost at its poles. Like Earth, Mars is tilted on its axis, so it has different seasons as it travels around the Sun. When the north part of the planet is tilted away from the Sun, it is northern winter. The polar ice cap, made up of CO₂ frost, gets much bigger in the winter. Likewise, when it's winter in the south, the southern ice cap grows.

Interestingly, the Mars Odyssey spacecraft has just discovered large amounts of water (H₂O) ice within the top few feet of the surface on Mars. This is a very significant finding, and may lead us to new places to look for life on Mars!

Thanks for your question.

David Spencer
Mission Manager
2001 Mars Odyssey Mission
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory

QUESTION:
This theory always bothered me. If we ever come out with the technology to send people on Mars. I have an idea of how to produce life on Mars. If you could drop a bomb on the polar ice caps, melting the ice,creating a greenhouse effect, rising the temperature. Therefore, you could grow algae with the ice that has been melted. Then the algae would produce oxygen, then there could be oxygen, heat, and water. Then there would be life on Mars. I am Chase Workman from Round Valley Middle School in 8th grade. Please write back.

ANSWER:
Hi Chase,

Qualitatively, the theory is accurate, but you will start to run into problems with the energy balance. First, it would require a lot of energy to melt the polar caps, more than any bomb produces. Second, the polar caps do not necessarily have enough carbon dioxide to raise the surface pressure enough to raise the temperature enough to have liquid water on the surface. So it is more difficult than it initially seems.

Beside the question of whether or not we can change Mars to make it easier for people to survive, there is also the question of whether or not we should change Mars to such a degree. Mars is unchanged by human intervention. There are few places on our own planet like this.

Joshua L. Bandfield
Postdoctoral Research Associate
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

QUESTION:
Could Mars once have been like Earth? If that is so, what could have happened to change it?

ANSWER:
There are many scientists that believe Mars was once a warmer, wetter planet like Earth. There is much evidence that there was once a significant amount of liquid water on the surface of Mars. Some scientists believe they see evidence of ancient shorelines, outlining long-ago ocean beds.

What changed Mars into the dry, barren landscape we see today? We don't know. But we'd sure like to find out, because the long-term future of planet Earth may be heading the same way. There are many theories...some believe a slow evolutionary process gradually removed water from the atmosphere, some believe a cataclysmic impact boiled off water, and the ejecta into outer space may have sucked out most of Mars' atmosphere with it. No one really knows for sure, but we're trying to find out.

Thanks for the question!

David Spencer
Mission Manager
2001 Mars Odyssey Mission
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory

QUESTION:
How big is Mars?
Do YOU think there's life on Mars?
Could there be intelligent life anywhere?

ANSWER:
Hi!
Mars is about half the size of Earth. The distance from the surface of Mars to the very center is 3390 km. I think it's possible that there could be microbial (bacteria) life on Mars. The bacteria would have to be able to live in a very cold environment, because it's very cold there! I don't think there is intelligent life on Mars, however I definitely think it's possible that there could be intelligent life somewhere else in the universe! It's very likely that there are other solar systems just like ours, with Earth-like planets. It's very likely that there may be intelligent life on those planets.

Deanne Rogers
Graduate Student
Mars Space Flight Facility
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
How did Mars get its irregular shape? What made the bulge?

ANSWER:
Like many rotating planets, Mars is fatter around its equator than it is around the poles. This is due to the centrifugal force caused by its rotation. However, Mars is also somewhat pear-shaped...there are highlands in the south, and lowlands to the north. How did it get this way? We don't know for sure, but many scientists believe that Mars may have been knocked into its irregular shape by a large asteroid impact.

Thanks for the question!

David Spencer
Mission Manager
2001 Mars Odyssey Mission
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory

QUESTION:
What created the structure of the 'face' on Mars?

ANSWER:
Here is an excerpt from the Malin Space Science Systems that have imaged the "Face on Mars" and provided soma analysis:

Viking orbiter images acquired in 1976 showed that one of thousands of buttes, mesas, ridges, and knobs in the transition zone between the cratered uplands of western Arabia Terra and the low, northern plains of Mars looked somewhat like a human face. The feature was subsequently popularized as a potential "alien artifact" in books, tabloids, radio talk shows, television, and even a major motion picture. Given the popularity of this landform, a new high-resolution view was targeted by pointing the spacecraft off-nadir on April 8, 2001.

You can view the images if you have internet access at:

http://mpfwww.jpl.nasa.gov/mgs/msss/camera/images/moc_5_24_01/face/index.html

Chris Shinohara
2001 Mars Odyssey Gamma Ray Spectrometer
Project Manager
Department of Planetary Sciences and
Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
University of Arizona

QUESTION:
What type of minerals are most abundant on Mars? What is Mars made of?

James
McDowell Intermediate High School
Millcreek School District
Erie, PA

ANSWER:
Excellent question! Currently, scientists have discovered the mineral hematite on Mars. This is very interesting because hematite usually forms in the presence of water, so the theory is that where we now see hematite, there use to be water.

Mars is also made of volcanic materials such as basalt, andesite, as well as, polar ices of water and frozen carbon dioxide(dry ice).

Laura Mehall
Graduate Research Assistant
Mars Space Flight Facility
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
How much longer will it take to figure out if people can live on mars?

ANSWER:
The real question is how long they need to stay and what quality of life they want. For a short visit we can take plenty of supplies along - including the air and water they need. In that case, we already have most of the technology developed. For true colonization, we still have plenty of things to figure out.

Kelly Bender
Mission Planner
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
How big are the mountains on Mars?
Brandon

ANSWER:
Hi Brandon,
Thanks for the question. The answer is that there are mountains of many sizes on Mars. Most of the mountains that we see are really volcanoes, though. A few of them are really neat because they are so big. There is an area on Mars called Tharsis that has four large volcanoes called the Tharsis Montes. The largest of these is called Olympus Mons. It is 25 km high and over 600 km across. The size of this volcano dwarfs the largest volcanoes on Earth, and is several times taller than Mount Everest, the tallest mountain on Earth.

Tim Glotch
Graduate Research Assistant
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
If we could plant plants, would we be able to change the atmosphere of Mars?

ANSWER:
Many people are intrigued with the possibility of "terraforming" Mars--turning Mars into a planet with a breathable atmosphere so that it can be colonized by humans. I've enjoyed reading the series of novels on the subject by Ben Bova. Plants love carbon dioxide (CO2), and the Mars atmosphere is almost entirely made up of CO2. Through photosynthesis, plants give off oxygen (O2). I doubt that the Martian soil would provide plants with the nutrients they need (the soil is basically sterilized by the Sun's ultraviolet rays), but if we could get enough of them to grow, they would almost certainly change the atmosphere of Mars--and make it more to our liking!

David Spencer
Mission Manager
2001 Mars Odyssey Mission
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory

QUESTION:
What is the weather like on Mars?

ANSWER:
The temperature on Mars ranges from light-jacket weather, just above freezing, to extreme cold with temperatures much lower than those found during the most brutal Antarctic night. It doesn't rain on Mars, but some scientists believe that it may occasionally snow, as carbon dioxide frost falls from the atmosphere.

Thanks for your question!

David Spencer
Mission Manager
2001 Mars Odyssey Mission
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory

QUESTION:
What do you make from the face-like mountain on Mars?

Matt from Bath Elem. at Bath, OH

ANSWER:
Thanks for the question, Matt.
This is a really important question, because some people think they see a face on Mars and then say that there must have been an ancient civilization on Mars. This couldn't be farther from the truth. The famous "face on Mars" picture was taken by one of the Viking orbiters in the 1970's. The resolution of the camera was poor compared to the resolution of the cameras we have today. When the picture was taken, the shadows being cast made the mountain actually look like a face.
Newer pictures of the "face" taken by the Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) on Mars Global Surveyor and by the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) on Odyssey show that there really is no face there. It's just an interesting mountain feature in Cydonia, Mars.

Tim Glotch
Graduate Research Assistant
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Have there been any speculations that what Mars looks like now could be what Earth would like if there were for some reason, another atmospheric problem like the dinosaurs went through when they became extinct? Or if Earth maybe got too hot from global warming, that everything would eventually die out and just become another 'Red Planet', could that happen?

ANSWER:
Most scientists believe that an enormous meteor impact changed Earth's atmosphere and led to the extinction of dinosaurs. Many scientists also believe that a huge impact on Mars could have changed it from a warm, wet planet to the cold, barren place it is today.

Global warming is actually turning Earth into more of a Venus-like planet, with a hotter, heavier atmosphere. Venus had a "runaway greenhouse effect," which is global warming taken to an extreme.

Somehow, Mars lost the water that it had on its surface. One of the big questions about Mars is "Where did the water go?" The answer to that question may impact how we view the future of Earth, as well.

David Spencer
Mission Manager
2001 Mars Odyssey Mission
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory

QUESTION:
What gases make up mars's ozone, and would there be enough gases to create a livable atmosphere for humans?

ANSWER:
This is an interesting and common question about Mars. There is no ozone layer on Mars, so there isn't anything to protect people on the surface from the dangerous ultraviolet radiation. The atmosphere on Mars is much thinner than that on earth. The air pressure on Mars is 7 millibars and here on earth it is 1000 millibars. Additionally, the gasses in that atmosphere are almost completely made of carbon dioxide, where we have lots of oxygen on earth. People would need to wear "mars suits" kind of like the astronaut's space suits in order to survive there. At this point, there is no technology that can change the atmosphere, although that is a common theme in science fiction books. Maybe the technology will be developed by people like you in the future.

QUESTION:
What is that huge crevasse on Mars called?

ANSWER:
The huge crevasse on Mars is called Valles Marineris. It is basically the Grand Canyon of Mars, though it is much, much bigger and deeper. The canyon would cross the entire Unites States.

Joshua L. Bandfield
Postdoctoral Research Associate
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

QUESTION:
What kind of minerals do you think you will find?
Tara

ANSWER:
Tara, we assume that we will find minerals similar to what we have on Earth - especially minerals related to basaltic volcanism (iron and pyroxenes). Of course we might see things that we don't exactly have on earth - because the conditions on Mars are different.

Kelly Bender
Mission Planner
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Is there light on Mars?
Anna jean

ANSWER:
Hi Anna Jean! Thanks for the question.

Since the sun shines on both Earth and Mars, there is light on Mars. But because the Mars atmosphere and surface are different than the Earth's we see that light in a different way.

Mars appears red because the martian surface and atmosphere contain materials which absorb all of the visible light except red.

Laura Mehall
Graduate Research Assistant
Mars Space Flight Facility
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Are there mountains on Mars?

Savannah Bikoff
Mountainside Middle School
6th grade

ANSWER:
There sure are. Some of them are much larger than the tallest mountains on the Earth.

Robert A. Mase
Lead Navigator
2001 Mars Odyssey Mission
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory

QUESTION:
If Mars would warm up some how and the ice would melt, how long would it take for evolution to start?

ANSWER:
That's a very good question, but it's also one that nobody knows the answer to. To tell you the truth, we're no even totally sure how life and evolution started on Earth. It will take a lot of work and collaboration by geologists, chemists and biologists over the next several decades to even start to answer the question. It's even possible that life might already exist on Mars.

Tim Glotch
Graduate Research Assistant
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
How old do scientists suspect Mars is?

Katie Robbins
Mountainside Middle School
6th grade

ANSWER:
Katie, scientists suspect that all the planets in our solar system formed at the same time - about 4.5 billion years ago. So we study Mars to see why its history is different from Earth - why over 4.5 billion years they ended up looking so different.

Kelly Bender
Mission Planner
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Since there is little gravity on Mars, would it be difficult to dig in the ground?

ANSWER:
The answer is no. Typically a Mars lander will use a mechanical device, e.g., a robotic arm, to dig in the ground which does not rely on gravity.

Dr. Peter Poon
Telecommunications and Mission Systems Manager
2001 Mars Odyssey Mission
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory

QUESTION:
What is it like on Mars? Does your hair stick straight up because of the gravity? I really want to know. Answer quick because I am in school

I AM YOUR BIGGEST FAN SO ANSWER SOON PLEASE

ANSWER:
You seem to be pretty excited about Mars. The best way to know what it is like on Mars is to look at the pictures that have been returned from the Viking and Pathfinder landers. The surface actually looks very similar to deserts like what we have on Earth. There isn't any water on the surface, but there's wind blowing dust and sand around. As for hair sticking straight up, I wouldn't suggest taking off your helmet while standing on Mars. It's pretty cold, you'll get frostbite and won't be able to breathe. There is a significant amount of gravity on Mars, though it's about one third of Earth's. So your hair probably won't stand up unless you rub a balloon on it.

Scott Nowicki
Graduate Research Assistant
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
If there is snow on mars there is water, right?
Jacob

ANSWER:
We believe that there is sub surface ice in the polar regions of mars. We do not believe that there is snow. What looks like snow in the images is carbon dioxide ice that forms over the polar regions at different times on Mars. But since there is sub surface ice at the polar regions, then there must have been some water.

Chris Shinohara
2001 Mars Odyssey Gamma Ray Spectrometer
Project Manager
Department of Planetary Sciences and
Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
University of Arizona

QUESTION:
How much heat would it take to melt the ice on mars?

ANSWER:
The Odyssey spacecraft is now in the process of determining how much water ice exists near the surface of Mars. We think there is quite a lot. Large meteor impacts provide a tremendous amount of energy, which during impact is changed from kinetic energy (mass and velocity) into heat. The heat from a large meteor impact almost certainly could melt most of the ice on Mars!

David Spencer
Mission Manager
2001 Mars Odyssey Mission
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory

QUESTION:
What does mars smell like?

ANSWER:
What a cool question - we've been trying to figure it out. I don't think anybody knows yet. The people in the room here are guessing that it probably smells rusty/dusty. If you figure it out, let me know!

Kelly Bender
Mission Planner
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Have we ever received any strange noises from Mars? If so, how do you research what the sound is?

ANSWER:
Interesting question. I hadn't really thought about it before, but haven't heard anything from Mars. We don't really have any equipment that has been sent to Mars that would be able to record noises. We can't hear anything from here since sound can't travel through space. I imagine that the winds and storms would produce sounds, but we haven't recorded those noises. This would be something that would be a really neat thing that people might experience if they ever land on Mars.

QUESTION:
Why is mars red?
Dustin

ANSWER:
Dustin, have you ever been to Utah? There are lots of red rocks around there. They are red for the same reason. Small amounts of iron from iron-rich minerals have been distributed throughout the dust and rocks and have been oxidized (rusted). Though the total amount of iron can be very low (less than 1%) it can strongly influence the color of the rocks.

Scott Nowicki
Graduate Research Assistant
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
How do we know what mars looks like?
Brandon

ANSWER:
Since the 1970's we have been sending missions to Mars in order to determine what the surface is like. We have had orbiters and landers that have collected data to both get a global view of the planet as well as sample small-scale characteristics. The best views of the surface as a person would see it is from the Pathfinder and Viking Landers. They took lots of pictures to characterize the surface materials. From a higher viewpoint, we have lots of large and small scale images of the planet from Mariner, Viking, Mars Global Surveyor, and Odyssey spacecrafts. These images showed us the regional surface characteristics including volcanoes, channels, dunes, and lots of other geologic features.

Scott Nowicki
Graduate Research Assistant
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Is mars dangerous?
bobbie jo

ANSWER:
That is an interesting question that I haven't thought about. In terms of being the source for evil aliens that will conquer earth and enslave us, I don't think we have anything to worry about from Mars. But I wouldn't suggest going there without a spacesuit. The temperatures would freeze you immediately, the lack of oxygen would asphyxiate you with your first breath, and the solar radiation bombarding the surface would fry your skin like a summer day in Phoenix. But in a nice cozy spacesuit, I think you'd be just fine.

QUESTION:
Who discovered mars?
tiffany

ANSWER:
Wow Tiffany, this is a tough question to answer. Since Mars is visible with the naked eye at night, people throughout time have been able to see it. The name Mars is the roman god of war (it's red color simulating blood).

A scientist named Tycho Brahe observed Mars over time and took many measurements. Another scientist named Johann Kepler, using Brahe measurements found Mars travels once around the Sun in 687days. Galileo was the first person to look at Mars through a telescope, and Huygens was able to determine that one mars day is almost 24 hours.

So you see Tiffany this is a tough one to answer.

Laura Mehall
Graduate Research Assistant
Mars Space Flight Facility
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Can food be grown on Mars?

Branson Eckel
Mountainside Middle School
6th grade

ANSWER:
Great question, Branson.
The answer is, not without a lot of help. One thing that plants need to grow on earth is something called free nitrogen. This exists on Earth, and we commonly add more to the soil in the form of fertilizer to help plants grow. There isn't any free nitrogen in the soil on Mars, so we'd need to bring a LOT of fertilizer to help the plants grow. Another problem is that liquid water can't exist at the surface of Mars because it is so cold, and the atmosphere is so thin. We'd need to bring a greenhouse-like enclosure where liquid water would be stable to grow the plants in. Finally, sunlight on Mars is weaker than it is on Earth. We'd need to bring sun lamps so that plants would have enough energy to photosynthesize.

Tim Glotch
Graduate Research Assistant
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Why isn't the Martian sky blue?

From: Natica Robinson
8th Grade
Charleston Middle School
Charleston, IL

ANSWER:
The reason the Martian sky is not blue is because its atmosphere is different than that of earth which causes the refraction of light to be different than here on earth, resulting in a different visible color. Here are two excerpts from the Imager for Mars Pathfinder Web Site:

Mars's atmosphere is primarily carbon dioxide, much thinner than our own atmosphere, and extremely dusty. With the atmosphere filters scientists hope to determine how much dust is in the air and what it consists of, as well as the amount of water vapor.

The first color IMP image of an overcast sky above Ares Vallis. Taken on Sol 16, approximately one hour and forty minutes before sunrise. The image was originally released in false color (below). We think of the Martian sky as being red, but early in the morning water ice clouds are lit by the sun without much interference from the dusty sky, leaving us with a grayish blue tinted sky.

There is an image on the web site:
http://www.lpl.arizona.edu/IMP/imp/sky/clouds.html

There is also a sunset image at:
http://www.lpl.arizona.edu/IMP/imp/sky/sunset.html
that shows a blue coloring to the sky.

Chris Shinohara
2001 Mars Odyssey Gamma Ray Spectrometer
Project Manager
Department of Planetary Sciences and
Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
University of Arizona

QUESTION:
What is the weather like on Mars?

ANSWER:
The weather on Mars is dry, dusty and very cold in the evenings. Mars can have very large dust storms that cover the entire planet. In the evening the temperature can go from about -80 to -100 degrees centigrade. The atmosphere on mars is primarily made of carbon dioxide and dust.

Chris Shinohara
2001 Mars Odyssey Gamma Ray Spectrometer
Project Manager
Department of Planetary Sciences and
Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
University of Arizona

QUESTION:
If carbon dioxide froze into dry ice at the north pole of Mars, why did water freeze at the south pole?

ANSWER:
There is frozen carbon dioxide and sub surface ice at both polar regions on Mars. Due to seasonal variations at Mars, the carbon dioxide will shrink at the northern pole and grow at the southern pole. There is sub surface ice at both poles on mars. We are unable to detect as much water at the northern polar region due to the thickness of the carbon dioxide ice. We expect to be able to see more sub surface ice in the northern polar region over the next year.

Chris Shinohara
2001 Mars Odyssey Gamma Ray Spectrometer
Project Manager
Department of Planetary Sciences and
Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
University of Arizona

QUESTION:
If there are ice caps of the poles then how come we can't use that for water for us to live on mars?

ANSWER:
Most of the ice in the polar caps is actually carbon dioxide (dry ice) and not water ice. It is that cold on Mars that CO2 freezes out of the air. But there is some water ice under the CO2 ice. That water could be used by humans colonizing Mars, but there isn't that much there, or at least not as much as we think should be there. That is why we are searching for subsurface ice. If there were lakes or oceans on Mars, the water had to go somewhere.

Scott Nowicki
Graduate Research Assistant
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Since Mars has rusted over, do you think that a spaceship that lands on Mars would rust over if it was left there for too long? Katie Heuermann, Mountainside Middle School, 6th grade

ANSWER:
Good question. Actually, the environment on Mars wouldn't currently cause iron to rust. It is very cold, and there is very little water and oxygen in the atmosphere, thus it is not very reactive. The oxidized iron on Mars is actually the result of a process that has occurred in the past on Mars, or occurs at such a slow rate that it would take forever for spaceships to rust. Also, we typically don't make spaceships out of iron or steel, because it's too heavy. So we probably wouldn't make a ship that could rust.

Scott Nowicki
Graduate Research Assistant
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Could astronauts ever step on mars or is the atmosphere to thin?

ANSWER:
The atmosphere on mars is very thin. The pressure is 7 millibars as compared to 1000 millibars on earth. The gas in the atmosphere is also a problem since it is almost all carbon dioxide and nitrogen. There is not oxygen for people to breathe. However, mars explorers could step on the surface if they wore "mars suits" kind of like the space suits that astronauts wear that would provide them with air to breath, keep them warm, and allow them to survive in the low pressure.

Amy Knudson
Research Associate
Arizona State University

QUESTION:
Does liquid water flow in places on Mars?
Sara

ANSWER:
Hi Sara,

This is a very interesting question to answer right now because the MOC (Mars Orbiter Camera) on the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft has discovered some evidence that there might be some water on the surface of Mars. Before the images from MOC, we didn't think that there was any water on the surface, even though there is lots of evidence for water flowing on the surface in the past. Big channels and little channels have pointed to the presence of water, but what we've found in the MOC images are little gullies with dark areas in them. They look like water might be seeping out of the rock near the rims of craters and flowing a short distance on the surface before freezing or evaporating.

QUESTION:
Do the two moons of Mars have any effect on Mars?

ANSWER:
Yes the two moons have a very small effect on Mars. Here is an excerpt from the SEDS web page (Students for exploration and Development of Space):

Phobos orbits Mars below the synchronous orbit radius. Thus it rises in the west, moves very rapidly across the sky and sets in the east, usually twice a day. It is so close to the surface that it cannot be seen above the horizon from all points on the surface of Mars.

And Phobos is doomed: because its orbit is below synchronous altitude tidal forces are lowering its orbit (current rate: about 1.8 meters per century). In about 50 million years it will either crash onto the surface of Mars or (more likely) break up into a ring. (This is the opposite effect to that operating to raise the orbit of the Moon.)

Deimos and Phobos are composed of carbon-rich rock and are probably asteroids perturbed by Jupiter into orbits that allowed them to be captured by Mars. Their densities are so low that they cannot be pure rock. They are more likely composed of a mixture of rock and ice.

Here is a comparison to the moon orbit from the SEDS web page:

The Earth's rotation carries the Earth's bulges slightly ahead of the point directly beneath the Moon. This means that the force between the Earth and the Moon is not exactly along the line between their centers producing a torque on the Earth and an accelerating force on the Moon. This causes a net transfer of rotational energy from the Earth to the Moon, slowing down the Earth's rotation by about 1.5 milliseconds/century and raising the Moon into a higher orbit by about 3.8 centimeters per year. (The opposite effect happens to satellites with unusual orbits such as Phobos and Triton).

Here are the web pages for you to look at:

http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/phobos.html

http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/deimos.html

http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/luna.html

Chris Shinohara
2001 Mars Odyssey Gamma Ray Spectrometer
Project Manager
Department of Planetary Sciences and
Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
University of Arizona

QUESTION:
Is there any carbon on Mars?

ANSWER:
Yes there is carbon on mars. We know this in at least two ways. The first way is from looking at the planet through telescopes and measuring the light going through the atmosphere. The atmosphere turns out to be mostly CO₂(carbon dioxide). The second comes from the Viking lander missions and understanding the chemistry involved in the creation of certain kinds of rocks which we know are found on Mars.

The Gamma Ray Spectrometer won't be able to tell us alot about carbon on mars because it makes up only a small amount of the total mass of mars(estimated to be about 0.6% 6 parts in 1000)and our instrument does not "see" carbon very well compared to "seeing" hydrogen or oxygen.

Chuck Fellows
GRS Systems Engineer
Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
University of Arizona

QUESTION:
Will you look for gold or silver on MARS?

ANSWER:
No we will not be looking for Gold or Silver on Mars although they are probably there. We are most interested in what we consider the good stuff - Oxygen, hydrogen and other elements that allow life to exist or are indicators that life once existed.

The Gamma Ray Spectrometer won't be able to tell how much Gold or Silver is there(I had to look this one up myself) because out instrument does not detect gold and silver very well. This point combined with the fact that on mars just like earth there is not a great deal of gold and silver compared to say the amount of soil. SO since there is not much there and we don't "see" it very well the GRS can't really say too much about Gold and Silver on Mars.

Chuck Fellows
GRS Systems Engineer
Lunar and Planetary Laboratory
University of Arizona