Terraforming the Martian Atmosphere

This illustration shows how water is lost on Mars normally vs. during regional or global dust storms. Text-readable PDF version.Credits: NASA/Goddard/CI Lab/Adriana Manrique Gutierrez/Krystofer Kim This graph shows how the amount of water in the atmosphere of Mars varies depending on the season. During global and regional dust storms, which happen during southern spring and summer, the amount of water spikes.Credits: University of Arizona/Shane Stone/NASA Goddard/Dan Gallagher Scientists using an instrument aboard NASA’s Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN, or MAVEN, spacecraft have discovered that water vapor near the surface of the Red Planet is lofted higher into the atmosphere than anyone expected was possible. There, it is easily destroyed by electrically charged gas particles, or ions, and lost to space.The warm summer temperatures and strong winds associated with dust storms help water vapor reach the uppermost parts of the atmosphere, where it can easily be broken into its constituent oxygen and hydrogen, which then escape to space. Previously, scientists thought that water vapor was trapped close to the Martian surface like it is on Earth.The researchers measured 20 times more water than usual over two days in June 2018, when a severe global dust storm enveloped Mars. They estimated Mars lost as much water in 45 days during this storm as it typically does throughout an entire Martian year, which lasts two Earth years. Learn more about this discovery. For More InformationSee [NASA.gov](https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2020/heat-and-dust-help-launch-martian-water-into-space-scientists-find) Related pages

Infographic explaining the MAVEN argon results. Enlarge or click "download" for print-resolution versions. Also available in text-readable PDF for the visually impaired. Animations of the MAVEN spacecraft, sputtering, and the evolution of the Martian climate. This video file is in the standard NASA-TV broadcast format. Animations begin at 1:36. Solar wind and radiation are responsible for stripping the Martian atmosphere, according to results from NASA's MAVEN mission. By measuring light and heavy isotopes of argon in the Martian atmosphere, scientists have determined that the majority of the planet's air and water were removed to space by sputtering. In this process, ions from the Mars atmosphere get picked up by the solar wind and slammed into other atoms at the top of the atmosphere, knocking them into space. Scientists used measurements of light and heavy argon from MAVEN and NASA's Curiosity rover to determine that sputtering has removed 65% of Mars' argon to space, along with the majority of other gases like carbon dioxide. Over billions of years, this transformed Mars from a hospitable environment into the cold, dry planet that we see today.Learn more about the MAVEN argon loss finding. For More InformationSee [NASA.gov](https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html) Related pages

Scientists have long suspected the solar wind of stripping the Martian upper atmosphere into space, turning Mars from a blue world to a red one. Now, NASA's MAVEN orbiter is observing this process in action, providing significant data on solar wind erosion at Mars.Watch this video on the NASA Goddard YouTube channel.Complete transcript available.This video is also available on our YouTube channel. The solar wind accelerates ions from the Mars upper atmosphere into space.Watch this video on the NASAexplorer YouTube channel. Movie without music and titles. Available for download in up to 4k resolution. The solar wind interacts with the Mars upper atmosphere, but is deflected past Earth by a global magnetic field (artist's concept).Credit: NASA/GSFC A solar storm approaches Mars (artist's concept). The Red Planet is thought to have lost much of its atmosphere to such extreme space weather.Credit: NASA/GSFC Artist’s rendition of a solar storm hitting Mars and stripping ions from the upper atmosphere.Credit: NASA/GSFC During a solar storm (right), Mars experiences a dramatic increase in atmosphere loss, compared with normal solar wind conditions (left). Artist's concept.Credit: NASA/GSFC Print resolution still of MAVEN observed O+ ion flux chart (with Mars) Print resolution still of MAVEN observed O+ ion flux chart (without Mars) Solar wind (moving from right to left) hitting Mars' induced magnetic field (in blue) Solar wind (moving from left to right) hitting Mars' induced magnetic field (in blue) Today, Mars is a global desert with an atmosphere far too thin to support bodies of flowing water, but evidence shows that Mars was considerably wetter in the ancient past. Scientists think that climate change on Mars was caused by the loss of an early, thick atmosphere, and NASA’s MAVEN mission is investigating whether it was driven into space.One of the prime suspects is the solar wind, a stream of electrically charged particles continuously blowing outward from the Sun. Unlike Earth, Mars lacks a global magnetic field to deflect the incoming solar wind. Instead, charged particles from the Sun crash into the Mars upper atmosphere, and can accelerate Martian ions into space. Now, MAVEN has observed this process in action – by measuring the velocity of ions escaping from Mars.The movies on this page compare simulations of ion escape with MAVEN’s observations of oxygen ion flux. The results closely fit the expected pattern, with the most energetic ions (in red) accelerated in a plume above Mars, while the majority of escaping ions (green) are lost along the “tail” region in the wake of the solar wind. MAVEN’s observations confirm that the solar wind is a significant contributor to atmosphere loss on Mars, and they bring scientists closer to solving the mystery of the ancient Martian climate. Read the full press release about this finding.Watch the November 2015 MAVEN Science Update. For More InformationSee [NASA.gov](http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html) Related pages

Principal Investigator Bruce Jakosky talks about MAVEN’s science observations at Mars.Watch this video on the NASAexplorer YouTube channel.For complete transcript, click here. MAVEN gazes at the setting stars during one of its stellar occultation campaigns. MAVEN's near-polar orbit gives it latitudinal coverage of the Martian atmosphere, while the planet's daily rotation provides longitudinal coverage. During its periodic "deep dip" campaigns, MAVEN lowers its closest approach to only 125 km above Mars, dipping into the upper atmosphere to measure it in situ. When water molecules are split apart in the Martian atmosphere, the resulting hydrogen atoms escape more easily from the planet than the heavier oxygen atoms. Before MAVEN entered its final science-mapping orbit, it observed carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen at varying altitudes above Mars. The heavier carbon and oxygen atoms cling tightly to Mars, while hydrogen atoms extend far above the planet. High above the thin Martian skies, NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft is carrying out a mission: determine how Mars lost its early atmosphere, and with it, its water. While previous Mars orbiters have peered down at the planet’s surface, MAVEN is spending part of its time gazing at the stars, looking for subtle changes in their color as they dip through the limb of Mars and set below the horizon. Such stellar occultations reveal what the atmosphere is made of, and how its composition varies with altitude. MAVEN’s observations are providing the most detailed picture of the Mars upper atmosphere to date, helping scientists understand how Mars turned from a warm and wet planet in its youth, into the forbidding desert that we see today. For More InformationSee [NASA.gov](http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html) Related pages

16x9 format Cinemascope format Billions of years ago when the Red Planet was young, it appears to have had a thick atmosphere that was warm enough to support oceans of liquid water – a critical ingredient for life. The animation shows how the surface of Mars might have appeared during this ancient clement period, beginning with a flyover of a Martian lake. The artist's concept is based on evidence that Mars was once very different. Rapidly moving clouds suggest the passage of time, and the shift from a warm and wet to a cold and dry climate is shown as the animation progresses. The lakes dry up, while the atmosphere gradually transitions from Earthlike blue skies to the dusty pink and tan hues seen on Mars today. Related pages