1. fluidized ejecta -

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1. fluidized ejecta -

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

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2. gas exchange experiment -

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

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3. labeled release experiment -

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

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4. outflow channel

• paths of huge catastrophic flooding

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5. permafrost -

• water ice, just under surface of planet

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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

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7. residual cap -

• smaller polar cap which remans permanently frozen

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8. runoff channel

• extensive systems of channels which resemble
  rivers on Earth

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9. seasonal cap polar

• cap which grows and shrinks each Martian year

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10. tectonic fracture -

• crack caused by crustal forces pushing surface
  upward

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1. Why are there no transits of the Sun by Mars?

• Mars can never come between the Sun and the Earth

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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).

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3. Why does Mars have seasons like Earth?

• Mars is tilted on its axis about the same angle
  as Earth.

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4. What compound makes up most of Mars
atmosphere?

• Carbon dioxide
• CO2

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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.

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6. Why is the Tharsis bulge believed to be
younger than the volcanic plains?

• It is even less heavily cratered than the
  northern hemisphere.

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7. Why is Olympus Mons unique among all the
volcanoes in the solar system?

• It is the largest known volcano in the solar
  system.

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8. What is a splosh crater?

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

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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.

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

• 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.

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11. Why does Mars appear red?

• The iron in the soil combines with the oxygen in
  the atmosphere to form iron oxide (rust).

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12. What are the names of Mars two moons?

• Phobos and Deimos

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13. Where did Mars moons probably originate?

• Their composition is very different from the
  planet itself, so they are probably captured
  asteroids.

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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.