Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Warming Up Mars With Greenhouse Gases

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the this-is-news-in-august dept.

fembots writes "Scientists are thinking of using the same toxic stuff (Octafluoropropane) already blamed for global warming here to put some life back on Mars. It would take hundreds of years but eventually ice sheets would melt, grass would grow here, and temperatures would hit 50 degrees along the equator of the planet. Martian organisms might be revived too - if there are any."

3 of 521 comments (clear)

  1. Toxicity of OFP by cyberfunk2 · · Score: 5, Informative

    Octafluoropropane is not really all that toxic.

    According to the MSDS (Material Saftey Data Sheet), the only real toxicity to worry about is asphyxiation, no worse than nitrogen or argon gas.

    Greenhouse gases != toxic (at least not implicity).

    MSDS link
    http://www.scottecatalog.com/msds.nsf/d118573c489f 39cc852569af00702e6f/26e5bede95a1fefb85256ef50045e 0e4?OpenDocument&Highlight=0,76-19-7

  2. Journalists Garble The Facts As Usual by John+Hasler · · Score: 5, Informative
    ...toxic stuff (Octafluoropropane)...
    It isn't toxic. Here's the MSDS .
    ...already blamed for global warming...
    And it isn't to blame for global warming: there isn't enough of it released to matter. CO2 is to blame for global warming.
    --
    Warning: this article may contain humor, sarcasm, parody, and perhaps even irony. Read at your own risk.
  3. Dr. Erik Clacey's Study by laodamas · · Score: 5, Informative

    The idea is to initiate a run-away greenhouse effect on Mars using a super-effective Greenhouse gas that is safe and easy to produce on Mars. 10-20*10^9 Kg of C2F8, a greenhouse gas 12,000 more effective than CO2, would seem to do the trick. Assuming that 10% of all sunlight reaching Mars could be trapped, Mars could be warmed enough to reach the triple point of CO2 within 100 years. This would release the CO2 (and hopefully water) frozen within the Martian Regolith into the atmosphere and possibly add enough atmosphere to allow for human exploration with only an oxygen mask a few yars later. At this point martian life, if it does exist, should flourish. If it does not we can start populating the planet with Earth species without nasty Mars life preservation debates.

    This is not an easy process. Our CFCs, in the Martian atmosphere, would last for thousands of years, so VERY careful monitoring would be required in order to prevent us from terraforming a Venus.

    Mars does not have a magnetosphere so our terraformed atmosphere would only have a life of about ten million years before evaporating.

    I have notes of the ongoing Mars Society Conference here if you want more information on the current state of manned Mars exploration.