Mars weather forecast: Clear skies, high of -30

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Discussion Overview

The discussion centers around the weather conditions reported by the Canadian weather station on the U.S. Phoenix probe on Mars, including temperature readings and the implications for future observations and potential for life. Participants explore the mission's duration, the Martian environment, and the possibility of a carbon cycle on Mars.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants express fascination with the Mars mission and hope for continued weather reports to track fluctuations compared to Earth.
  • There is uncertainty about the estimated duration of the Phoenix lander's functionality, with some suggesting it may last 3 to 4 months due to decreasing sunlight as winter approaches.
  • Participants discuss the potential for the lander to become a weather station after its primary mission and the possibility of it being buried under frost.
  • One participant raises the idea of a carbon cycle on Mars, suggesting that increased solar output could lead to global warming and the release of CO2 from polar ice caps, potentially allowing for plant life.
  • Another participant mentions research indicating that a portion of condensed CO2 is distributed into the atmosphere annually, although specifics are unclear.
  • There is a discussion about the differences between the Martian carbon cycle and Earth's, noting the absence of tectonic plates and active volcanoes on Mars.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the duration of the Phoenix mission or the implications of the Martian carbon cycle, with multiple competing views and uncertainties expressed throughout the discussion.

Contextual Notes

Limitations include the dependence on assumptions about solar energy availability for the lander and the unresolved specifics regarding the Martian carbon cycle and its comparison to Earth's.

blimkie.k
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An article from the Globe and Mail, the 37 million dollar Canadian space station onboard phoenix reports its first weather readings. If your planning on traveling to Mars for a spring getaway I suggest you pack your winter clothing.


"Mars weather forecast: Clear skies, high of -30
ANNE MCILROY

From Wednesday's Globe and Mail

May 27, 2008 at 8:14 PM EDT

The reddish-beige sky was clear, temperatures reached a high of –30 degrees and a low of –80, and winds were out of the northeast at 20 kilometres an hour.

A Canadian weather station on board the U.S. Phoenix probe made history Tuesday with its first report from the Martian arctic. The $37-million station was activated within an hour of the landing on Sunday evening, but the information wasn't relayed to an orbiting satellite and then back to Earth until Monday night."


(The entire article can be found on the globe and mails website under technology, however since I created a new username because i forgot my old password and have not surpassed 15 posts yet so i cannot post URL)


"
 
Astronomy news on Phys.org
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080527.wmars28/BNStory/International/

Can't use the ol' rock on a string weather station eh?
 
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Awesome you found the article, I am quite fascinated by this Mars mission. I hope they continue to post weather reports it would be itneresting to keep track of them and see how the weather flucuates and such compared to our own globe.

Does anyone know how long phoenix is estimated to function for? I would imagine they are just going to run it until all its energy is used.
 
I can't seem to find a mission duration anywhere, but like the rovers, Phoenix gets its power from the sun. The rovers are currently in the fifth year of their intended 90 day lifespan.
 
I believe that the lander is expected to run for about 3 or 4 months. The problem is that is that it is far enough North, that as Martian winter approaches the Sun disappears below the horizon for longer and longer periods. Eventually, there will not be enough sunlight to keep the batteries charged and the lander will run out of juice. The lander is also expected to be buried under accumulated frost as winter sets in.
 
Ahh, that makes sense. I wonder if there is any thought to trying to resurrect it next [Martian] summer?
 
russ_watters said:
Ahh, that makes sense. I wonder if there is any thought to trying to resurrect it next [Martian] summer?

I've been wondering that myself but can't seem to find an answer. The engineers mentioned that after the primary mission has ended (approx 90 days) it will just become a weather station. They also mention hoping that it will last long enough to actually watch the encroaching ice or snowfall accumulation.

I'm guessing equipment will start to fail after it reaches a certain low temperature. The battery being the primary one.
 
So if Mars gets frost which would be dry ice (co2) that means it already has some kind of carbon cycle correct?

Something I've always wondered, thousands of years maybe less or more, increased solar output causes a global warming on Mars which could possibly release more c02 from the polar ice caps. If the average global temperature were to reach a suitable degree possibly, Mars could sustain plant life even if it being types of mosses and evergreens capable of flourishing in cold regions.
 
blimkie.k said:
So if Mars gets frost which would be dry ice (co2) that means it already has some kind of carbon cycle correct?

Something I've always wondered, thousands of years maybe less or more, increased solar output causes a global warming on Mars which could possibly release more c02 from the polar ice caps. If the average global temperature were to reach a suitable degree possibly, Mars could sustain plant life even if it being types of mosses and evergreens capable of flourishing in cold regions.

Your right about their being a carbon cycle. I remember reading a few different research papers where (on average) there's an agreement that approximately 1/4 of the visible condensed CO2 is annually distributed into the atmosphere. Later in the cycle, it condenses back into solid CO2 while completely passing a liquid phase. I can't remember specifics, but it's primarily due to the mix of pressures and temperatures.
 
  • #10
Yea the cycle would be nothing like Earth's considering Mars has no tectonic plates no man made greenhouse gases and i don't think it has any active volcanoes except some may suggest otherwise, maybe phoenix will turn up something interesting.
 

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