Mars Definition and 519 Threads

Hi all this is my first post. I'm not formally educated in physics concepts but find so much about it very interesting. I registered to ask if this is plausible: It appears we attribute our electromagnetic field on Earth to it's behavior deep inside the planet. There is supposedly a...

Title says it all. I was debating this with some friends that if I came into a nice hunk of funds, just how hard would it be to finance a two man ship to go to Mars?

Good morning, yesterday night I was out for a walk, and as usual - Venus and Jupiter rose in the West which is pretty hard to miss. But I also knew that Mars would rise in the East. I spotted a red shining point of light in the east and in the hazy city sky I assumed this was Mars. So my...

Homework Statement Estimate the lifetime of CO2 in the atmosphere of Mars. Homework Equations The Attempt at a Solution What is he asking? How long has the CO2 been in the atmosphere? It just seems rather vague.

Hi everyone, I have a question - what's the smallest unmanned entry vehicle possible for descent from Martian orbit to the surface using an aeroshield and parachute? What kind of mass and dimensions would be feasible for a minimal payload? Do you think 10cm wide is too small? How about 5cm...

How come the analemma for Earth is in a "figure 8" form and Mars is circular? Does it have to do with radial velocity?

I read this very interesting article on physorg about how planetary tilt is essential to life and various things that can diminish axial tilt over time or not give rise to one; things that would make life less probable. But I came across this quote that I couldn't help but question the accuracy...

As I understand it, Mars has 2 asteroids in orbit. One slowly moving away from Mars, the other on an orbital collision course. Could the collision possibly be violent enough to liquify the planets mantle? If so, would Mars re-establish a magnetic field? Is there sufficient ice in the polar caps...

Let's say we have two clocks that are synchronous here on Earth. One of the clocks is instantly transported to Mars. What time does the clock on Mars read? Is it ticking slower or faster than the one on Earth? I want to talk about SR here and not the gravity factor of GR. Let's say the...

Homework Statement Scientists have found evidence that Mars may once have had an ocean .5km deep. The acceleration due to gravity on Mars is 3.71m/s^2. (a) What would be the gauge pressure at the bottom of such an ocean, assuming it was freshwater? (b) To what depth would you need to go...

Is this as simple as the Earth making one complete revolution around the Sun in one year? Would you say Mars makes the revolution around the Sun in x year(s) and that is its time? I take it we are using time relative to the Sun in these questions.

please help me to solve this problem: Mars has a mean density less than the mean density of the Earth's mantle. How is it possible that Mars could have a metallic core given this fact? Hint: No calculations are required. Compare the densities used in part a) with the density of mantle rocks like...

So often I see shows on TV discussing the seemingly inevitable terraforming of Mars by humans. These shows generally talk about the challenges in creating an atmosphere (basically, heating up the frozen carbon dioxide to release greenhouse gases), thereafter releasing all of Mars' water, and...

Homework Statement Is the centripetal acceleration of Mars in its orbit around the Sun larger or smaller than the centripetal acceleration of the Earth? Homework Equations I assume that the relevant equation is a=v^{2}/r since you are trying to compare the centripetal accelerations of Mars...

Homework Statement You are an astronaut-in-training for the first mission to Mars by humans. You are about to go into a Mars simulator and need to know the answers to the following questions to complete the simulation correctly. You already have memorized basic information about Mars such as...

I am trying to determine approximately how much fuel it would take to launch a bi-propellant rocket from Mars and Earth such that they escape each planet's respective gravity. Unfortunately, my orbital mechanics is a little rusty, and the solution I'm getting does not make much sense. Here's...

Might Mars serve as a pre-tectonic model for Earth? For example, no continents, no mountain building nor deep oceans? And does homogeneity of Valles marinaris, as opposed to Grand Canyon, suggest homogeneity for Earth's pre-tectonic environment?

Homework Statement This is not a homework assignment, its more of a personal project. An object (Mass undecided yet) is launched from the North pole of Mars towards the North pole of Sun. It is assumes that Sun, Earth and Mars are in a perfect linear alignment in front of one another and that...

I am researching for a sci-fi screenplay that I am writing for fun. To keep bone density from losing the estimated 1.5% per month on Mars I want to simulate Earth gravity by having the colonists live aboard condominiums that are fitted with a rail car suspension and travel in a perfect circle in...

Homework Statement A train on the planet surface of Mars is traveling along a banked track shaped as large circle with a radius of 500m. Q. Assuming Mars gravity is 3.8m/s^{2} what Velocity v must the Martian train travel to simulate a total artificial gravity equal to Earth's...

Hi all, If we find some fossils there, will we be able to tell if it's DNA-based? Similarly if we find fossils (or even current life) on Europa what is it likely to be based on? I'm very curious if extraterrestrial life is like what we have here on Earth or not. It seems clear that...

Beautiful animation. Landing system is novel and elegant. Hovering rocket platform lowers the vehicle on a cable to the the ground and then goes away. A lot of the deceleration work at Mars is done by the planet's atmosphere, saving fuel weight. Great stuff. Launch of "Curiosity" is...

Is there clay on Mars; if so what might it suggest?

Currently Jupiters moon's Io, Europa, and Ganymede are in a Laplace resonance. If Mars's moon's Phobos and Deimos were in such a Laplace resonance (1:1, 2:1, 4:1, 8:1) would it affect Mars? If yes, please explain how you feel it would...

Consider a very long conveyor belt from Earth to Mars. If we turned on the conveyor belt from Earth, would its opposing end instantly move on Mars? Or would the timing be slowed somehow from relativity? Thanks

Hi. So what'ya think? I've always been fascinated by this! The main problems are: Temperature Air Pressure Air composition Very weak magnetosphere The temperature and air-pressure problems are linked and could be solved by a heating up the planet. Any good ideas? But, the main obstacle is...

How did Kepler knew that the time of Mars' orbit was 687 days ? It doesn't seem to me a simple task to determine that timing because after 687 days, Earth is at a different place in the solar system and Mars seems to be also in a different place in the solar system. How was that 687 days...

Hi, As you can see, I'm new to this forum, but i saw some of the other questions being posted and hoped someone might be able to answer my question: essentially, if a second Mars were to be constructed (lets say in a few hundred years) so that it has the same density as Mars I and is in...

Homework Statement A pendulum has a period of 4.50s on Earth. What is its period on Mars, where the acceleration of gravity is about 0.37 that on Earth? (2 sig figs) Homework Equations T= 2Pi(L/g)^.5 The Attempt at a Solution first must solve for the length on earth L =...

I'd like to have two main questions about it. 1. Radiation protection : theoretically, were thick leaded glass domes for settlements be enough for it, or you need to build underground anyway? 2. Temperature : I read, that heat conditions on Mars equator is similar to Antarctica. We...

Can we start planting trees on Mars now? Considering that there are so many tree species on Earth that lives in extreme conditions, at least one of them would survive on Mars right? Imagine what Mars would be like in 50 years if we started doing this now.

Tonight; July 5th, 9 pm central time. I just happened to look up and catch a gorgeous view (perfectly clear) of the quarter moon with a tiny "star" just barely visible above the terminator about 1/4 moon diameter, grabbed my binoculars, then googled it, and realized it was Mars sitting about...

In 1889 and 1909 Roberto Mantovani published a hypothesis of Earth expansion and continental drift. He assumed that a closed continent covered the entire surface of a smaller Earth. He believed thermal expansion led to volcanic activity, which broke the big continent into smaller continents. The...

Some article made mention of intense radiation on Mars. Does that mean Mars lacks a magnetosphere? I figured it would be about like earth, with a molten iron core.

Hi! I would like to know two things: 1. Is it possible to use radiometric dating on samples of rocks collected from Mars? 2. If so, in which situations would such method be impossible to use or would wield inaccurate results? Thanks a lot for your help!

Hello all, I need your help. (I believe this si the correct forum) Between 2011 and 2013, i read a news in internet, that the dust that coveres rocks in Mars seem to be very uniform, like all rocks that was drilled by Mars science laboratory twin rovers, seem to have the same thickness of...

Roflmao this article is too hilarious not to share. http://www.space.com/24529-mars-mystery-rock-nasa-lawsuit.html

6 minute video. Long on visuals, short of science details... but I found myself watching to the end. Lots of explosions. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRCIzZHpFtY

If we were much more serious and backed into the space program, we could get make some serious progress, and could probably get a sizeable colony started on Mars by 2025 or so, but how could we make this happen, and it should happen soon, because this planet can't support too many more people...

NASA's horizon system shows the angle (S-O-T) of Sun and planet from the view of Earth. Could you please tell me how one measure the angle of Sun and Mars when opposition nearly takes place. In other words, if S-O-T approaches 175/176/178 degrees, how does one from the view of Earth measure this...

Lets say Earth lost its magnetic field 4 billion years ago and lacked geological activity like mars. Would the atmosphere of Earth be comparable to Mars atmosphere? How thin could it have been without a magnetic field and constant geological activity? Thank you.

OK, before I get into the main question, I figure I should give a little background. First off, this is not something that is going to be made for real. It's for a flight simulator called Orbiter (found here), and in particular for a personal project to update and improve upon the existing...

Homework Statement What should be the temperature of a spherical asteroid located between Mars and Jupiter, twice as far from the Sun as Earth? The asteroid has no atmosphere and its albedo is .15. Homework Equations The Attempt at a Solution The asteroid is twice as far from...

Hello again :), I have to solve a rather extensive task. Most important are questions a) and c). I appreciate any help :)! Homework Statement The task: Determine characteristics of a Hohmann transfre towards, when circular planetary orbits around the Sun with R_E = 149.6 \cdot 10^6 km...

I've pretty much ignored all this but increasingly I hear people talking about a company sending people to Mars as though it was a done deal. No one seems to stop and think how a company with no resources to speak of will perform the R&D and set up a Mars base in ten years. Now they claim...

Homework Statement The force of attraction between Mars and its moon, Phobos, which has a mass of 1.072 x 10^16kg and a radius of 11.1km is 5,18 x 10^15 N Find the height of Phobos above the surface of the moon. Homework Equations f=G(m1)(m2)/d^2 d(mars-phobos surfaces)= d (moon-phobos...

Homework Statement Flight to Mars. To send a satellite from Earth to Mars, a rocket must accelerate the satellite until it is in the correct elliptical orbit around the sun. The satellite does not travel to Mars under rocket power, because that would require more fuel than it could carry. It...

Homework Statement Moon's gravity is 5.31ft/sec^2 An object has the weight of 3.5 lb-f on the moon. What is its lb-m What is the lb-m and lb-f on Mars with gravity of 12.1 ft/sec^2. Homework Equations w=mg=mg/gc gc= gravitational constant----> 32lbm*ft/sec^2 for earth The...

Mars current atmosphere is 0.006 bar. It is theorized that the atmosphere was thicker in the past possibly thicker than Earths 1 bar atmosphere. There are many processes that could have done this such as having no magnetic field, lack of geological activity, a planetoid crashing into it and...

Is the experiment to find water on Mars by NASA is most idiotic experiment ever conducted by mankind. I mean, spacecraft send to Mars use hydrocarbons or hydrogen as fuel; this fuels byproduct is water. So there is a greater chance that after some exploration if NASA find traces of water on...