Mars Express Confirms Water on Mars

jki writes "So, finally: Through the initial mapping of the South polar cap on 18 January, OMEGA, the combined camera and infrared spectrometer, has already revealed the presence of water ice and carbon dioxide ice. This information was confirmed by the PFS, a new high-resolution spectrometer of unprecedented accuracy. The first PFS data also show that the carbon oxide distribution is different in the northern and southern hemispheres of Mars. The MaRS instrument, a sophisticated radio transmitter and receiver, emitted a first signal successfully on 21 January that was received on Earth through a 70- metre antenna in Australia after it was reflected and scattered from the surface of Mars. This new measurement technique allows the detection of the chemical composition of the Mars atmosphere, ionosphere and surface." On another note, NASA has gotten some sort of signal from Spirit, but it's still not fully functional.

Comments

Re:Is this really news?

[Troed]

It has been confirmed on the north pole before, but not the south. That's why it's news.

JPL has an update: 20min data session rcat 0830EST

[TheOldCrow]

Looks like some telemetry was just received from Spirit:

http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/releases/2004/30.cfm

Re: How would it react to wind?

[mikerich]

Look at photos of the Spirit, what with it's flat platform on top..... They landed this thing in an area known to have alot of wind (and in their words, has alot of "dust devils" and little twisters).

Easy, Martian atmosphere pressure is only 1% that of Earth's. So whilst the winds on Mars can reach enormous speeds, they actually exert very little force.

Best wishes,
Mike.

Re:Europe

[gunnk]

Well, you can have two kinds of poles: geographic and magnetic.

Magnetic is the way your compass points. Planets do not have to have an appreciable magnetic field, so it is possible to have a planet without a magnetic north.

Geographic is based on the direction of a planet's spin. Here's one way to choose geographic north: the right-hand rule.

Stick out your right-hand like you are going to shake hands, but with your thumb pointing upwards. Now curl your fingers in towards your palm. If the curling of your fingers occurs in the same direction as the planet is spinning then north is in the direction of your thumb. If your fingers are curling opposite to the direction of the spin then your thumb is pointing south.

The right-hand rule is used a great deal in the world of physics.