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Mars' liquid water may have had an atmospheric 'escape route'
Scientists have long believed that Mars lost its liquid water very gradually, turning into a mostly dry planet over an extremely long time frame. However, they may have to toss that assumption out the window. A University of Colorado, Boulder team has discovered that Mars has an atmospheric "escape route" which may have helped hydrogen drift into space at much faster rates. Mars Express data shows that water molecules float higher than usual during the planet's warmer seasons, avoiding an Earth-like "cold trap" that keeps water close to the ground. Once the molecules are in the middle atmosphere, ultraviolet light helps break them up into oxygen and hydrogen -- and since hydrogen is very light, it doesn't take much for the element to escape Mars' gravity.
College students help NASA by crashing satellite into the Arctic
Our idea of a great evening in college was listening to some Operation Ivy and drinking a few brews before heading home to secretly pore over A Literature of Their Own. Other college kids, however, have more on their plates than that, such as those who currently work at LASP -- the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics. LASP is partially staffed by undergraduates at Colorado University, providing a low-cost alternative to more experienced labor, while giving students the kind of hands-on experience not normally available to them. One recent task, for instance, involved the crashing of ICESat, a NASA decommissioned satellite, into the Arctic. Most of it burned up in the atmosphere, while some smaller parts made their way to the Barents Sea. The mission was considered successful and, as for the students who carried it out? Well, let's just say that their nerd credentials are now rock solid.
