Mars Red Planet

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Since the first telescope siting of Mars in the 1600s, the Red Planet has been a primary focus of space exploration due to the planet’s suspected similarities to Earth and possibility of being habitable (Mason, 2005). Mars, the fourth planet from the sun, is a terrestrial planet with a desert like atmosphere, strong winds, reoccurring dust storms, and a thin atmosphere composted mostly of carbon dioxide. With temperatures fluctuating from 140 K-300 K, Mars’ climate is almost habitable, and is expected to have previously been much warmer and wetter than it is today (Spohn et al., 1998). Over the past fifty years, explorations to Mars have provided evidence that an abundance of liquid water existed on the Red Planet in it’s past. Mars is therefore a specific target of interest, as the presence of water may indicate that the planet can, or has, sustained life, therefore resulting in NASA’S mantra to, “follow the water” (Naderi et al., 2006). NASA first began exploring Mars in the 1960s with the successful launch of Mariner 4, a flyby spacecraft that obtained the first close up …show more content…

Since its arrival on the Red Planet, Curiosity has made several discoveries and advancements to NASA’S Mars Exploration Program. First, an analysis of a rock sample collected by the rover in 2013 indicates that Mars has the right chemical disposition to support living microbes. Sulfur, nitrogen, hydrogen, oxygen, phosphorus and carbon, ingredients essential for life to exist, were discovered in the “Sheepbed” mudstone in Yellowknife Bay (NASA Website: Curiosity News). The sample also depicted clay deposits made of 20-30% smectite, a mineral which is produced by the presence of fresh water. The pH of the identified water is neutral and not too salty, making it favorable for supporting life (New Scientist

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