Recent Mars Phoenix Data

reply to post by LateApexer313


I wouldn't trust much on an explanation about temperature by someone that does not know how to write "Fahrenheit"

reply to post by rikriley


Specific gravity is a measurement of the relation between two densities, so it is the same everywhere.

Saying that iron, for example, has a specific gravity of 7.8 means only that a specific volume of iron weights 7.8 times the weight of the same volume of water.

Originally posted by NGC2736

On topic, do we now have proof of NASA playing fast and loose with data? Or is this another example of NASA being too smart to use common sense? Or are we missing something here?

As for this question, I believe there is a massive dis-information part of NASA that continually feeds the public what they like to hear so those tax payers dollars continue to flow.


As for starting a thread in the wrong area, Sorry my bad I am a "noob" here with starting threads!!!


please forgive me...

Originally posted by ArMaP
The last data available, from Sol 22, is:

Min. temperature: -80ºC
Max. temperature: -32ºC
Pressure: 8.29 milibar

This is AIR temperature. Weather reports never give you the temperature of rocks heated in direct sunlight. Still, there is a large gap, more than 32°C, to liquid water (not sublimation, we are above the triple point at 6 millibars)...

I found this explanation, FWIW:

How can water ice go straight from being a solid to being a gas (sublimation)?

Just like dry ice does here on Earth, water ice goes from solid to gas when the pressure is below 6.1 millibars and it gets heated (like it does in the Martian sun). It can also go straight from solid to gas above 6.1 millibars when the vapor pressure (amount of water vapor in the air) is low enough. This is because the molecules of water in solid form and gas form are not at equilibrium.

You might be surprised to know that the same thing happens here on Earth. If you have a frost-free freezer, you may have noticed that your ice cubes gradually shrink over a period of days. This is sublimation: the fan is constantly sucking water vapor out of the freezer so the ice cubes surrender more and more water molecules to the dry air over time.

The pressure on Mars is about 8 millibars, very close to the "triple point" of water, which is the point where it can easily exist as either a solid, a liquid or a gas (see the chart below). Since the vapor pressure is so low, water can easily sublime in the Martian atmosphere, especially as the surface heats up in the sunshine. When that happens, the soil can often get hotter than the air in the sunshine (think of a lizard sunbathing on a hot rock).

Source: The Mars Ice FAQ: How Do You Know It's Water?

reply to post by nablator


Sheesh!! Thanks nablator.....now why in the heck didn't I think of using the ice cube in the freezer example?? OH Wait!! I did. And someone (not nablator) laughed it off with a bit of sarcasm....

Good of nablator to come around and explain it more scientifically.....

Back to an important that has been overlooked, in this latest discussion....a trench was made by the Phoenix scoop. Then, four time-lapse photos were taken, over four successive 'Sols'....and lo and behold, some 'rocks' disappeared!! Were they crystals of salt? NO!!! Where they some other crystal? NO!!! Could they possibly have been water ice??

One might wonder if they were CO2 chunks, but it seems the climate there is too warm, for CO2 to form.....discussions???

Why just talk about it why not look at the Ice On Mars.

Looks like ice in the link below.

graphics8.nytimes.com...

Holy cow. That's what the scientists said when they saw this picture of the ground underneath the lander. The two flat, bright surfaces look like ice, which was the reason Phoenix was sent to the arctic region. These patches, which have been named "Holy Cow," are out of reach of the robotic arm. However, ice should be close to the surface all around the lander and within easy reach.

Photo: NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory and University of Arizona

Originally posted by Woodlock
Why just talk about it why not look at the Ice On Mars.

Absolutely!!! Guess I have some things to learn when posting threads!!!!


Thanks!!!