China's presumed-dead Zhurong rover spotted telltale patterns of ancient climate change in the Martian dunes.
China's Zhurong Mars rover has found evidence of a dramatic shift in Mars' climate 400,000 years ago, in the form of dark ridges laid on top of bright dunes that ripple across the sands of Utopia Planitia, which the rover is exploring.
The crescent shape of the dunes has been eroded over hundreds of thousand years, with long dark ridges, called transverse aeolian ridges , forming on top of the dune fields, but apparently at a different angle than that of the wind-blown dunes. TARs have been observed all across Mars at lower mid-latitudes, but global atmospheric circulation models that describe the direction of the winds on the Red Planet have been unable to explain how the features could have formed — until now.
The ice age began and ended because of changes in the angle at which Mars spins, brought about by Milankovitch cycles. These cycles involve a periodic wandering of a planet's rotational axis relative to the plane of its orbit, caused by the combined effects of the gravity of the sun, Jupiter and the other planets, as well as the shape and precession of the planet's orbit.
Somewhat surprisingly, an ice age on Mars is not quite the same as on Earth. Typically, Martian ice ages see warmer temperatures at the poles, and movement of water vapor and dust towards the mid-latitudes, where they are deposited. During the last ice age, this water and dust formed a meters-thick layer that still remains beneath the surface in selected locations below 60 degrees latitude, and almost everywhere above 60 degrees.
Argentina Últimas Noticias, Argentina Titulares
Similar News:También puedes leer noticias similares a ésta que hemos recopilado de otras fuentes de noticias.
'INHERENTLY UNDEMOCRATIC': Wisconsin gov's veto creating 400-year education budget could trigger lawsuitWisconsin Gov. Tony Evers is under fire for using a partial veto on a spending plan to increase public school funding for the next 400 years by strategically striking out text.
Leer más »
McDonald’s Indonesia launches wedding packages with McNuggetsSay 'I do' to 100 chicken sandwiches and 400 McNuggets for your wedding guests!
Leer más »
NASA's Perseverance rover finds preserved organic matter on MarsThe discovery is a boost to the rover's mission: finding signs of ancient life on Mars.
Leer más »
NASA's Perseverance rover discovers organic matter on MarsThe discovery has implications in the search for potential signs of life on the Red Planet, researchers said.
Leer más »
Mars In Virgo Is An Invitation To Explore Your Freaky SideMars in Virgo natives don't shy away from exploring their fetishes. Embrace the freaky side of your personality with no hesitation (just practice safe and consensual sex).
Leer más »
Lifespans of rivers revealed on Titan and ancient MarsSpace imagery is revealing water and methane rivers past and present.
Leer más »