Thanks KoRn.
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Posted on 02/25/2015 3:19:43 PM PST by BenLurkin
Like Earth, the interior of Mars has undergone a process known as differentiation. This is where a planet, due to its physical or chemical compositions, forms into layers, with denser materials concentrated at the center and less dense materials closer to the surface. In Mars’ case, this translates to a core that is between 1700 and 1850 km (1050 – 1150 mi) in radius and composed primarily of iron, nickel and sulfur.
This core is surrounded by a silicate mantle that clearly experienced tectonic and volcanic activity in the past, but which now appears to be dormant. Besides silicon and oxygen, the most abundant elements in the Martian crust are iron, magnesium, aluminum, calcium, and potassium. Oxidation of the iron dust is what gives the surface its reddish hue.
...
The Martian core, by contrast, is largely solid and does not move. As a result, the planet lacks a magnetic field and is constantly bombarded by radiation. It is speculated that this is one of the reasons why the surface has become lifeless in recent eons, despite the evidence of liquid, flowing water at one time.
(Excerpt) Read more at universetoday.com ...
Gouda cheese in a red wax coating.
Better than green cheese from the moon.
Ignorant question alert: would it be (remotely) possible to reinvigorate Mars’ core by starting some sort of nuclear reaction there?
Lots. It's 1849 all over again. But eggs will cost $30 each.
Port wine cheese
I hope it’s smoked Gouda. I love smoked Gouda.
Everywhere you look, you see rocks.
Rocks rocks rocks.
You can’t throw a rock without hitting a rock.
And red dye #9.
Yes, among many other things, including the events of the day.
Drill Baby Drill...
YUMMY!
Needs more Cowbell.
The idea of differentiation is that things with greater density will be subjected to greater gravitational attraction. Leaving aside that you could leave a uranium ball the size of the Queen Mary in Central Park and thousands or zillions of years from now, whatever was beneath the uranium ball would still be beneath the uranium ball, there is no gravitational attraction for anything at the center of the earth. (The center of the earth is essentially surrounded by a uniform mass field.) So if differentiation had any validity the heavy/dense stuff would work its way to a tennis ball like shell something like a third (I'm guessing. I didn't do the math.) of the way down from the surface toward the center.
ML/NJ
Snips and snails and puppy-dog tails,
That’s what Mars is made of.
New research discounts Mars ocean evidenceIn a paper published in Thursday's issue of the journal Nature, planetary scientists at the University of Arizona and MIT said that features in images of the planet previously thought to be remains of ancient shorelines are more likely linked to the planet's volcanoes. Paul Withers of the University of Arizona and Gregory Neumann of MIT decided to reexamine the MOLA data for some of the paleoshoreline features identified in the earlier work. They found, though, a closer correlation between the features and tectonic activity than any processes related to the formation of shorelines. According to Withers, the key piece of evidence was the terraces identified in the earlier study. Instead, those features are more likely tectonic stress ridges created by massive volcanism earlier in the planet's history.
by Jeff Foust
April 7 2001
SpaceFlightNowNASA Finds Red Planet Is Rich In Green GemLarge outcrops of a gemstone mineral commonly used in jewellery have been found on Mars, scientists said yesterday. On Earth the mineral, olivine, takes the form of the brilliant green gemstone peridot. An instrument aboard a Nasa spacecraft spotted an area of nearly 19,000 square miles rich in olivine in the Nili Fossae region of Mars. It is thought that the broken nature of the ground at Nili Fossae may be linked to the Isidis impact basin, formed long ago by an asteroid or comet. On Earth, exposed olivine weathers and breaks down quickly because of the planet's relatively warm, wet weather. If the mineral has been there since early in the planet's history, it would mean the planet has been cold and dry for most of its life.
Telegraph (UK)
10-24-2003NASA Gets A Good Look At Mars Soil And A True PuzzleIt's difficult to imagine life surviving now in the barren landscape around the rover--though mission planners have said one goal of the robotic Mars expeditions is to scout out possible landing sites in case the U.S. ever sends astronauts to Mars...The sticky-looking soil may be the first true puzzle of the mission, scientists said. Technicians believe the probe's landing airbags disturbed the dirt near the rover when they retracted back under the craft, soon after the landing. The dirt that was dragged by the airbags now looks oddly folded, almost as if it were damp clay... Researchers believe Martian soil in the rover's vicinity is bone-dry near the surface, adding to the mystery. Squyres said it's possible that moisture evaporating from below left a salty, cohesive crust at the surface.
by Jeremy Manier
1/07/2004Red planet's hue due to meteors, not water"There is something of a paradox about Mars," agrees Joshua Bandfield of Arizona State University in Tempe. His team recently showed that the planet has no large deposits of carbonates, which should have formed if giant pools of water had persisted on the surface. Bandfield suggests that liquid water must have occasionally burst out of the ground, carving channels and gullies, but that it quickly froze again in the frigid Martian climate.
by Hazel Muir
12/21/2006New Data Suggest Mars Soil Not As Life-Friendly As ThoughtTwo samples analyzed within the last month by Phoenix's Microscopy, Electrochemistry and Conductivity Analyzer (MECA) suggest that the Martian dirt may contain perchlorate, a highly oxidizing substance, which would create a harsh environment for any potential life. The findings stand against the results from MECA's first analysis, which indicated the dirt was Earth-like in certain respects, including its pH and the presence of certain minerals. "Initial MECA analyses suggested Earth-like soil. Further analysis has revealed un-Earthlike aspects of the soil chemistry," said Phoenix principal investigator Peter Smith.
by Andrea Thompson
8/04/2008Carbonates Found On Mars Adds To MysterySurveying intact bedrock layers with the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars, or CRISM, scientists found carbonate minerals, indicating that Mars had neutral to alkaline water when the minerals formed at these locations more than 3.6 billion years ago. Carbonates, which on Earth include limestone and chalk, dissolve quickly in acid. Therefore, their survival until today on Mars challenges suggestions that an exclusively acidic environment later dominated the planet. Instead, it indicates that different types of watery environments existed. The greater the variety of wet environments, the greater the chances one or more of them may have supported life.
Scientific Blogging
12/26/2008Mars 'remains in embryonic state'Mars formed in record time, growing to its present size in a mere three million years, much quicker than scientists previously thought. Its rapid formation could explain why the Red Planet is about one tenth the mass of Earth. The study supports a 20-year-old theory that Mars remained small because it avoided collisions with planetary building material... Scientists believe that the planets grew from material pulled together by electrostatic charges - the same force that's behind the "dust bunnies" under your bed. These proto-planetary dust balls grew and grew until they formed what scientists term "embryo" planets. These rocky masses were large enough to exert a considerable gravitational force on surrounding material, including other nascent planets.
by Jennifer Carpenter
5/27/2011Clay Deposits Don't Prove Existence of Ancient Martian LakesA research team led by Alain Meunier of the Université de Poitiers in France studied lavas containing iron and magnesium -- similar to ancient clays identified on the surface of Mars -- in the French Polynesian atoll of Moruroa. The team's findings show that the same types of clay outcrops can be caused by the solidifying of water-rich magma in a volcanic environment, and don't require Earthlike aquatic conditions at all. The results also correlate to the deuterium-to-hydrogen (D/H) ratio within clays found in Martian meteorites... Additionally, the clay deposits found on Mars can be several hundred meters thick, which seems to be more indicative of upwelling magma than interactions with water.
by Jason Major
September 10, 2012
Single-mindedness is for liberals.
Great response Johnny!
And a beautiful woman behind every tree.
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