The Mars carbonate catastrophe was an event that happened on Mars in its early history. Evidence shows Mars was once warmer and wet about 4 billion years ago, that is about 560 million years after the formation of Mars. Mars quickly, over a 1 to 12 million year time span, lost its water, becoming cold and very dry. Factors in Mars losing its water and most of its atmosphere are: the carbonate catastrophe, loss of the planet's magnetic field and Mars' low gravity. Mars' low gravity and loss of a magnetic field allowed the Sun's solar wind to strip away most of Mars' atmosphere and water into outer space.[1][2][3]
Mars' gravity is 62.5% less than Earth, that is 100 kg has a weight of about 980 Newtons on Earth would be about 367.5 Newtons on Mars. The low gravity is due to Mars' small size and also its lower density. Mars' mass is only 11% of Earth's mass. Mars' diameter is 4,213 miles (6,780 kilometres) and the diameter of Earth is 7,926 miles (12,756 kilometres).[13][14][15]
Mars has only about 0.7% of the atmospheric pressure of Earth. Mars' atmosphere is about 6.5 millibar, Earth's atmosphere is 1013 millibar. Surface of Mars is like Earth at 100,000 feet (30 kilometres) in the stratosphere.[19][20]
Mars' atmosphere's humidity is 0.03%, Earth's average humidity is about 50% (lowest 0.36%, high 100%).
Intense ultraviolet solar radiation, due to thin atmosphere.
Cometsfalling on Mars bring some water and ice to Mars. The thin Martian atmosphere means the freezing, evaporation, and boiling point of water is all at the same temperature. Thus liquid water cannot exist on the surface of Mars .[24]
^Time History of the Martian Dynamo from Crater Magnetic Field Analysis Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets 118, no. 7 (July 2013), by Robert J. Lillis et al., page 1488–1511
^Timing of the Martian Dynamo Nature 408, by G. Schubert, C. T. Russell, and W. B. Moore, December 7, 2000: page 666–667
^Franz, Heather B.; Trainer, Melissa G.; Malespin, Charles A.; Mahaffy, Paul R.; Atreya, Sushil K.; Becker, Richard H.; Benna, Mehdi; Conrad, Pamela G.; Eigenbrode, Jennifer L. (2017-04-01). "Initial SAM calibration gas experiments on Mars: Quadrupole mass spectrometer results and implications". Planetary and Space Science. 138: 44–54. Bibcode:2017P&SS..138...44F. doi:10.1016/j.pss.2017.01.014. ISSN0032-0633.
^Hess, S.; Henry, R.; Tillman, J. (1979). "The seasonal variation of atmospheric pressure on Mars as affected by the south polar cap". Journal of Geophysical Research. 84: 2923–2927. Bibcode:1979JGR....84.2923H. doi:10.1029/JB084iB06p02923.
Missions are ordered by launch date. Sign † indicates failure en route or before intended mission data returned. ‡ indicates use of the planet as a gravity assist en route to another destination.
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