Mars is too small for the oceans

Water is essential for life on Earth and other planets, and scientists have found sufficient sources of water Ancient history of Mars. But today there is no liquid water on the surface of Mars. New research from the University of Washington in St. Louis suggests a fundamental reason: Mars may be too small to hold large amounts of water.

Remote sensitivity studies and analyzes of Mars’ meteorites suggest that Mars was once filled with water compared to Earth. Spacecraft Viking NASA – and, more recently, Rovers Curiosity e Perseverance – Draw back dramatic images of Martian landscapes marked by river valleys and flood channels.

Despite this evidence, liquid water is not on the surface. The researchers proposed a number of possible explanations, including weakening the magnetic field of Mars, resulting in the loss of the thick atmosphere.

One New study Pnas Says another reason: “The fate of Mars was decided from the beginning,” he said Kun Wang Principal Professor of Research, University of Washington. “There may be a threshold in the size requirements of rocky planets to retain enough water to be comfortable enough to live on a plate tectonics higher than Mars.”

Wang and his collaborators used standard isotopes of the element Potassium (K) To estimate the presence, distribution and abundance of turbulent components in different planetary bodies.

Potassium is a moderately volatile element, but scientists have decided to use it as a kind of tracer for more volatile elements and compounds such as water. Using this approach, the researchers determined that Mars lost more potassium and other volatile elements than Earth during its formation. In this way, the researchers established a well-defined relationship between body size and the isotopic composition of potassium.

“It is undeniable that there was once liquid water on the surface of Mars, but it is difficult to estimate only by remote sensing and rovers,” Wang said.

According to Elonora AmmannitoResearcher Blessing, நிறு Establishing the total amount of water during the evolution of Mars has important implications for the study of the habitat of the Red Planet. The newly released study, using an analogy between two turbulent elements such as water (H2O) and potassium (K), explains that liquid water on the surface of Mars may have always been very low. If confirmed, this result calls into question the hypothesis that the Red Planet may have developed its own life forms.