1. fluidized ejecta -

• liquid material expelled from meteor crater. Probably caused by permafrost melting when meteor hits.

2. gas exchange experiment -

• test for life using nutrient broth added to soil sample then looking for gases produced by metabolic activity.

3. labeled release experiment -

• add compounds containing radioactive carbon to the soil, then seeing if organisms had eaten or breathed the carbon

4. outflow channel

• paths of huge catastrophic flooding

5. permafrost -

• water ice, just under surface of planet

6. pyrolitic release experiment -

• radioactive carbon dioxide added to soil and atmosphere, then carbon dioxide is removed , and soil is tested to see if any gas had been absorbed

7. residual cap -

• smaller polar cap which remans permanently frozen

8. runoff channel

• extensive systems of channels which resemble rivers on Earth

9. seasonal cap polar

• cap which grows and shrinks each Martian year

10. tectonic fracture -

• crack caused by crustal forces pushing surface upward

1. Why are there no transits of the Sun by Mars?• Mars can never come between the Sun

and the Earth

2. Why is Mars so much dimmer than Venus as seen from the Earth?• 1. Mars is more than twice as far from the

Sun; therefore, less sunlight.

• 2. Surface area only 30% that of Venus.

• 3. Albedo is only 0.15 (Venus’ is 0.7).

3. Why does Mars have seasons like Earth?• Mars is tilted on its axis about the same

angle as Earth.

4. What compound makes up most of Mars’ atmosphere?

• Carbon dioxide

• CO2

5. Compare the northern and southern hemispheres.• Northern hemisphere is largely volcanic

plains.

• Southern hemisphere is heavily cratered highlands several kilometers above the lowland north.

6. Why is the Tharsis bulge believed to be younger than the volcanic plains?• It is even less heavily cratered than the

northern hemisphere.

7. Why is Olympus Mons unique among all the volcanoes in the solar system?• It is the largest known volcano in the solar

system.

8. What is a ‘splosh’ crater?

• A crater where the ejecta appears to have been liquid when expelled.

9. How does the size of the Mariner Valley compare to the Grand Canyon?• The Grand Canyon could fit into one of

the side ‘tributary’ cracks.

10. The southern polar cap is larger than the northern polar cap. What does this have to do with the eccentricity of Mars’orbit?

• During southern winter, Mars is considerably farther from the Sun than in northern winter. Therefore, the southern winter season is longer and colder, and the polar cap grows larger.

11. Why does Mars appear red?• The iron in the soil combines with the

oxygen in the atmosphere to form iron oxide (rust).

12. What are the names of Mars’ two moons?

• Phobos and Deimos

13. Where did Mars’ moons probably originate?• Their composition is very different from the

planet itself, so they are probably captured asteroids.

14. Why were Martian volcanos able to grow so large?• The lesser gravity of Mars (only 40% of

Earth) allowed the mountains to grow higher because they weighed less.