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Radar Map of Buried Mars Layers Confirms Climate Cycles

Posted by Soulskill on from the dust-and-sand-need-seasons-too dept.

Matt_dk writes "A radar instrument on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has essentially looked below the surface of the Red Planet's north-polar ice cap, and found data to confirm theoretical models of Martian climate swings during the past few million years. The new, three-dimensional map using 358 radar observations provides a cross-sectional view of the north-polar layered deposits. 'The radar has been giving us spectacular results,' said Jeffrey Plaut of JPL, a member of the science team for the Shallow Radar instrument. 'We have mapped continuous underground layers in three dimensions across a vast area.'"

5 of 114 comments (clear)

  1. This was confirmed in 2002 by mbone · · Score: 5, Interesting

    While these results are cool, the obliquity cycle was confirmed in 2002, in a paper in Nature, Orbital forcing of the martian polar layered deposits by Jacques Laskar et al., They used pictures of the layering at the edge of the polar caps, not radar, but its basically the same idea, and they showed good correlation with recent obliquity cycles.

    Again, it's cool to see these layers throughout the caps, but I don't think that anyone has doubted the connection with the obliquity / insolation cycles for a while.

    1. Re:This was confirmed in 2002 by mbone · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Well, I have not the slightest doubt that Nathaniel Putzig and company know all about these earlier results - but, once you get the PR people involved, they always want to say, first, confirmed, etc.

  2. Re:Global Warming by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Right. I'm not at all worried about Martians keeping quiet about global warming. Instead, the problem is when Earth's global warming deniers look upon climate change on Mars as evidence that anthropogenic global warming on Earth is false.

  3. Re:Global Warming by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Back when I was at school those who pointed out how closely the shapes of the continents match either side of the Atlantic were considered dumbasses, because obviously big things like continents couldn't possibly move. That was the scientific concensus, until some of the results started coming in from the International Geophysical Year. (1957...I'm dating myself here aren't I)

    Anthropomorphic Global Warming/Global Climate Change may or may not be happening but concensus does not mean shit in science. Evidence is the only thing that actually counts.

  4. Re:Global Warming by TimSSG · · Score: 2, Interesting

    While I am not a denier, I will not believe there is a serious problem till the Democrats start to support Nuclear Power; because, Nuclear Power is a proven solution to reducing CO2 while generating large amounts of electrical power.

    Tim S.