The atmosphere of Mars is constantly disrupts the solar wind – BBC Russian

Image copyright NASA

Image caption Probe Maven in orbit Mars for nearly a year

Scientists closer to understanding the processes that led to the almost complete disappearance of the dense atmosphere of Mars.

Experts NASA published the results of new studies of the Martian atmosphere, conducted on the basis of data received from the probe Maven.

According to the scientists, the disappearance of the dense atmosphere of Mars fault currents emitted by the Sun particles known as the solar wind.

The speed of the solar wind is about one and a half millions of kilometers per hour, in connection with which he blows away every second of the Martian atmosphere about one hundred grams of various gases.

Image copyright AP

Image caption The solar wind carries with electrically charged particles, which have their own magnetic field and remove ions from the atmosphere of Mars

According to scientists, in the distant past, at the dawn of the history of the world, the rate of atmospheric erosion was even higher than today.

“We are well advanced in understanding of the processes that occur in the upper atmosphere of Mars “- said Bruce Dzhakovski, head of the scientific program of the probe Maven.

” Our findings are based on the first 6-7 months of the measurement probe. We are still busy analyzing the data, and have already received the approval of the extension of research that will allow us to complete a full year of observations and record the impact of all times of the Martian year the atmosphere “.

All the previous observations from satellites and landers on Mars indicate that Mars had once, billions of years ago, dense atmosphere, which could be liquid water.

This is confirmed by the presence of many traces of rivers and lakes on the surface of the planet.

Image copyright NASA

Image caption The reasons that the Martian atmosphere has become dry and rarefied, becoming more and more clear

However, the current density of the Martian atmosphere is only 1% of the Earth, which means that liquid water immediately sublimates or evaporates.

The probe Maven is on highly elliptical orbit around Mars, which makes it periodically to penetrate beneath the upper layers of the atmosphere to an altitude of just 200 km from the surface.

This allows it to measure the composition of the Martian atmosphere and its changes depending on solar activity.

The solar wind carries with electrically charged particles, which have their own magnetic field. In the absence of the intrinsic magnetic field of Mars, these particles interact with ions of atmospheric gases, accelerate the speed of their movement and lead to their removal from the atmosphere.

The probe Maven also observed the impact of a coronal mass ejection in the Martian atmosphere in March this year.

coronal mass ejections are huge bubbles of plasma, which are periodically separated from the solar corona, and spread throughout the solar system. Such plasma of the solar wind moves faster and has more energy.

When the flow of the plasma has reached the Martian atmosphere, the probe registered devices increase the escape velocity of the gas molecules from the air 10-20 times.

If be on Mars remained a magnetic field similar to that still exists on the Earth, its atmosphere would retain most of the gases for billions of years of its history.

However, according to modern concepts, the planetary magnetic field, which is called the existence of the iron core of the planet, in the case of Mars disappeared after a few hundred million years after its formation.