Latest / Elon Musk Podcast / Ice on Mars Equator - NEW DISCOVERY

Transcript

Ice on Mars Equator - NEW DISCOVERY · Elon Musk Podcast

• 0:01
  Hey everybody, welcome back to the Elon Musk Podcast.
• 0:05
  This is a show where we discuss the critical Crossroads, The
• 0:08
  Shape, SpaceX, Tesla X, The Boring Company, and Neuralink,
• 0:13
  and I'm your host, Will Walden. If you want uninterrupted
• 0:17
  episodes of the Elon Musk podcast, please go to
• 0:20
  clubelon.supercast.com to find out how.
• 0:25
  There's a link in the show notes the European Space Agency's Mars
• 0:29
  Express orbiter has potentially identified enormous ice water
• 0:33
  deposits beneath the Martian surface located at the Red
• 0:37
  Planet's equator. These deposits are estimated to
• 0:39
  be about 3.7 kilometers thick, and if melted, they could cover
• 0:44
  Mars with a water layer approximately 2 meters deep or
• 0:47
  fill Earth's Red Sea. This revelation is reshaping our
• 0:51
  perception of Mars, suggesting a past word.
• 0:54
  Glaciers, lakes and river channels were prevalent.
• 0:58
  Now Colin Wilson, who's a project scientist at ISA,
• 1:01
  highlighted the significance of this.
• 1:03
  He stated we've seen evidence of glaciers, extinct, glaciers
• 1:07
  which are no longer there, but also some glaciers covered with
• 1:10
  dust. This discovery shows that the
• 1:13
  abundance of water on ancient Mars it's hinting at a landscape
• 1:17
  dramatically different from the arid planet that we see today.
• 1:20
  And Mars Express first confirmed the presence of ice on Mars in
• 1:24
  2004. The discovery of these deposits
• 1:27
  came in 2007, but their composition was unclear at the
• 1:31
  time. They were thought to be
• 1:33
  accumulations of dust, volcanic ash, or sediment.
• 1:36
  NASA in 2015 also observed what appeared to be streams of salty
• 1:40
  water on Mars, indicating the planet's dynamic nature.
• 1:44
  Now, Jim Green, who's NASA's director of planetary science,
• 1:48
  said that the evolution of Mars and the understanding it of it
• 1:52
  is very important. He said Today we're
• 1:54
  revolutionizing our understanding of this planet.
• 1:57
  Our Rovers are finding that there's a lot more humidity in
• 2:00
  the air than we ever imagined. Now, the location of these ice
• 2:05
  deposits and Mars equator rather than the poles has surprised
• 2:09
  scientists. Wilson remarked on the unusual
• 2:12
  nature of this finding, a Perrigate's oddity to having a
• 2:14
  polar ice camp in Earth's equator.
• 2:17
  This unexpected location could have significant implications
• 2:20
  for future human missions to Mars as well.
• 2:22
  And despite the excitement, Wilson pointed out practical
• 2:25
  challenges for exploration in the future.
• 2:28
  The average temperature on Mars, ranging from 20 Celsius to -153
• 2:33
  Celsius, make the equator ice a potentially more accessible
• 2:38
  water surf for human missions. However, the ice buried under a
• 2:42
  thick dust layer might not be easily reachable for immediate
• 2:47
  exploration needs. The Mars Express probe, which
• 2:50
  launched in June of 2003 and reached Mars in December of
• 2:54
  2003, has been studying the Red Planet for over 2 decades.
• 2:58
  Its recent findings at the MFF, the Fosse Formation, provided
• 3:04
  deeper insights into the Martian surface and its history.
• 3:08
  Now the the Medusae Fosse Formation.
• 3:12
  That's a difficult one to say. Over 15 years ago, Mars Express
• 3:16
  studied that identifying massive deposits up to 2.5 kilometers
• 3:21
  deep. Initial observations were
• 3:23
  inconclusive about the composition of these deposits.
• 3:26
  And Thomas Waters of the Smithsonian Institution, lead
• 3:30
  author of both the initial and recent studies, now confirms
• 3:33
  these deposits are thicker than previously thought, extending up
• 3:36
  to 3.7 kilometers thick. The MMF characterized by wind
• 3:41
  sculpted features as one of Mars most extensive deposits.
• 3:45
  The new data suggests that these features are not just
• 3:48
  accumulations of dust, volcanic ash, but include significant
• 3:51
  layers of ice covered by a protective layer of dust or ash.
• 3:55
  Now, Andrea Cicchetti of the National Institute of
• 3:59
  Astrophysics, Italy, explains that the new data from radar
• 4:04
  from the Mars Express MARSIS instrument was crucial in
• 4:08
  identifying the icy nature of the MFF.
• 4:10
  The low density and radar transparency of these deposits
• 4:13
  are consistent with ice, challenging previously
• 4:16
  assumptions. Now, this discovery indicates
• 4:18
  that the massive stores of ice near Mars equator must have
• 4:22
  formed during a difficult and different climate epoch.
• 4:26
  Existence of such extensive ice deposits changes our
• 4:29
  understanding of Mars climate history, suggesting a past where
• 4:33
  water was more abundant. Wilson notes that while this
• 4:36
  discovery is exciting, it also raises many more questions.
• 4:40
  Understanding the age of these ice deposits and Mars conditions
• 4:42
  at that time remain a challenge. Confirming the presence of water
• 4:45
  ice in the MFF would significantly alter our
• 4:48
  comprehension on Mars. Climatic past the location and
• 4:52
  extent of these IC deposits are crucial for planning future
• 4:55
  human missions to Mars. Now, human missions in
• 4:58
  particular will benefit from the availability of water ice near
• 5:01
  the equator. However, the thick dust covering
• 5:04
  these deposits poses a pretty thick barrier to immediate
• 5:08
  exploration. One specific area, Emedias
• 5:12
  Dorsum, is expected to contain the thickest ice rich deposits
• 5:17
  within the MFF. Understanding and mapping these
• 5:19
  deposits are key to future explorations and scientific
• 5:22
  inquiries. While Mars Express maps deep
• 5:25
  water ice, other missions like the TGO, equipped with the
• 5:29
  friend instrument FREND, provide insights into near surface
• 5:33
  water. These collaborative efforts are
• 5:35
  enhancing our knowledge of Mars, its history at the potential for
• 5:38
  future exploration. Now, ESA's Mars Express orbiter
• 5:42
  has made a groundbreaking discovery now of the potential
• 5:45
  ice water deposits at Mars equator.
• 5:48
  These findings challenges our understanding of Mars climate
• 5:50
  history and opens new possibilities for human
• 5:53
  exploration. And despite the challenges in
• 5:55
  accessing these ice deposits, the information gathered is
• 5:58
  invaluable in piercing together the complex story of Mars in
• 6:01
  this evolution. Hey, thank you so much for
• 6:03
  listening today. I really do appreciate your
• 6:05
  support. If you could take a second and
• 6:07
  hit the subscribe or the follow button on whatever podcast
• 6:10
  platform that you're listening on right now, I'd greatly
• 6:13
  appreciate it. It helps out the show
• 6:14
  tremendously and you'll never miss an episode.
• 6:17
  And each episode is about 10 minutes or less to get you
• 6:21
  caught up quickly. And please, if you want to
• 6:23
  support the show even more, go to patreon.com/stage Zero and
• 6:29
  please take care of yourselves and each other.
• 6:31
  I'll see you tomorrow.