- Mars’ s atmosphere is thin and, compared to Earth, almost there, but it can still teach us about the history of the planet and its status today.
- The ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, a project of the European Space Agency and Russia’s Roscosmos, recently discovered gas it has never discovered before.
- Hydrogen chloride, which requires special conditions for formation, has been found in the atmosphere, raising many questions.
The Mars we see today is dry, dusty and bare. Yes, there is some trapped water in ice near the poles, and perhaps some melting that takes place in the Martian year, but other than that there is not much to comment on the history of the a planet that could be rich and alive. Projects like the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, sent to Mars by the European Space Agency and Russia’s Roscosmos space agency, are helping to pull the curtain back and reveal some of the mysteries which the planet still has.
Now, in a pair of new studies published in Science Advances, researchers are using data from the Trace Gas Orbiter revealing that they have discovered gas they have never seen before around Mars . The modern gas, hydrogen chloride, the first halogen gas found in the Martian atmosphere, appears to be linked to seasonal changes, but the discovery ultimately raises more questions than it answers. .
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Planetary atmosphere may not seem like a very important thing to study, especially in terms of an atmosphere as thin as the atmosphere of Mars. But while the atmosphere of Mars may not be enough to support life on its surface, it can still be a sign of the processes playing out on the planet’s surface. The interesting part about discovering hydrogen chloride in the Martian atmosphere is that it appears that water was (or still is) an important part of the planet ‘s climate.
“You need a water valve to release chlorine and you need water by-products – hydrogen – to create hydrogen chloride. Water is essential in this chemistry, ”said Kevin Olsen, co-author of the research, in a statement. “We are also seeing a correlation with dust: we will see more hydrogen chloride when dust activity rises, a process linked to the seasonal heating of the southern hemisphere. ”
But what exactly does this mean? It’s still hard to say. Anything that generates the gas seems to be related to summer in the southern hemisphere of the planet, but other than that, it is difficult to determine the -series of events leading up to its generation.
In the second paper, researchers reveal that measurements of the ratio of deuterium to hydrogen in the planet’s atmosphere indicate significant water loss over the planet’s history. This supports the idea that Mars was once rich in water and may have even supported large lakes, rivers and oceans on its surface.
Mike Wehner has been reporting on technology and video games for the past decade, covering news and trends in VR, wearables, smartphones, and the future of tech. Mike was most recently a Tech Editor at The Daily Dot, and has appeared in USA Today, Time.com, and in countless web and print outlets. His love of narrating only second place on his game thesis.