Discover Mars

Every two years, Earth and Mars align in their orbits, significantly reducing the distance between the two planets. These occasions are called oppositions, and during oppositions, Mars becomes visible at night and appears brighter in this orbital configuration.

The opposition of Mars on July 27 and 31 will bring the planets within 58 million kilometers of each other, the closest they have been in 15 years.

Not only is this a good time to observe and photograph Mars, but it’s also an excellent opportunity to initiate investigations into the Red Planet, given its reduced distance.

You might notice news every two years about a rocket being launched to Mars. This year is no different, and if all goes well, another spacecraft, NASA’s InSight, will launch tomorrow morning.

Mission Focus

The focus of the InSight mission is not to study and analyze the surface of Mars or what is above it, but rather the opposite: to study what lies beneath its surface.

The goal this time is to discover more about Mars’s formation and specifically how the planet was formed.

The rocky planets of the Solar System—Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars—are believed to have formed in very similar ways, but they are not exactly the same, and Mars is the most accessible of them all (apart from Earth, of course).

By understanding Mars’s current appearance and reading its vital signs, scientists aim to infer how the planet was formed.

The InSight lander is equipped with three main scientific instruments: a seismometer, a thermometer, and a device for measuring Martian “reflections.”

It also contains common devices like cameras and weather data sensors.

Seismic Experiment

The seismic experiment designed to measure earthquakes (referred to as quakes on Mars) is called the Seismic Experiment for Interior Structure (SEIS).

It is so sensitive that it is expected to detect even disturbances caused by Martian dust devils! However, the real interest lies in detecting shock waves caused by meteorite impacts and internal or surface movements, such as landslides or rockfalls.

Similar to Earth, earthquakes are very useful for investigating the planet’s internal structure.

Seismic waves change as they propagate through different types of terrain, and by analyzing them, scientists can determine the types of rocks and their distribution beneath the planet’s surface.

This method can also reveal if there are pockets of liquid water or even underground volcanic tubes.

With this technique, it is possible to determine the extent of Mars’s internal structures, including where the crust ends and the mantle and core begin, as well as gaining insight into their composition.

Thermometer on Mars

The so-called “good thermometer” is a 5-meter-long bar that penetrates the Martian soil.

At that depth, the chances of surface temperature variations affecting internal measurements are minimal.

What is particularly surprising is that each half-meter segment has a generator that emits a thermal pulse and monitors how that pulse dissipates in the ground.

The goal of this experiment is to study how heat is distributed at different depths and, therefore, through different layers of soil.

With this information, scientists can understand how the planet’s internal heat escapes or should have escaped in the past.

As rocky planets cool from the outside in, their internal heat becomes trapped.

Over billions of years, internal heat has flowed through the structures and escaped into space, reinforcing the deeper layers.

Besides heat from its formation, the radioactive decay of elements in the soil also produces substantial heat, following the same path as it flows through the interior before dispersing into space.

Conclusion

This same situation occurs on Earth, and comparing what we know about our planet with what is being studied on Mars will provide valuable perspective.

The third primary instrument is a radio experiment called RISE.

It consists of two antennas that measure the lander’s position on the planet’s surface with high precision.

Just like Earth, Mars exhibits rotation around its axis, and the difference between the measured position and the expected position is recorded, taking only rotation into account.

These small rotational differences indicate the planet’s internal alignment; with varying densities, Mars rotates differently.

By analyzing the temperature, the thermal pulse, and the reflectivity of Mars, NASA refers to this as a planetary science probe.

In addition to these aspects, the mission will test new technologies.

With InSight, there will also be two cubes the size of a suitcase accompanying the mission.

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Source of information: g1.globo.com

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