User:Alec Fitting/Water on Mars
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[edit]Present Water
[edit]It is possible that liquid water could also exist on the surface of Mars through the formation of brines suggested by the abundance of hydrated salts.[1][2] Brines are significant on Mars because they can stabilize liquid water at lower temperatures than pure water on its own.[3][4] Pure liquid water is unstable on the surface of the planet, as it is subjected to freezing, evaporation, and boiling.[3] Similar to how we salt roads on Earth to prevent them from icing over, briny mixtures of water and salt on Mars may have low enough freezing points to lead to stable liquid at the surface. Given the complex nature of the Martian regolith, mixtures of salts are known to change the stability of brines.[5] Modeling the deliquescence of salt mixtures can be used to test for brine stability and can help us determine if liquid brines are present on the surface of Mars. The composition of the Martian regolith, determined by the Phoenix lander, can be used to constrain these models and give an accurate representation of how brines may actually form on the planet.[6][7] Results of these models give water activity values for various salts at different temperatures, where the lower the water activity, the more stable the brine. At temperatures between 208 K and 253 K, chlorate salts exhibit the lowest water activity values, and below 208 K chloride salts exhibit the lowest values. Results of modeling show that the aforementioned complex mixtures of salts do not significantly increase the stability of brines, indicating that brines may not be a significant source of liquid water at the surface of Mars.[8]
- ^ Chevrier, Vincent F.; Rivera-Valentin, Edgard G. (November 2012). "Formation of recurring slope lineae by liquid brines on present-day Mars: LIQUID BRINES ON MARS". Geophysical Research Letters. 39 (21): n/a–n/a. doi:10.1029/2012GL054119.
- ^ Gough, R.V.; Primm, K.M.; Rivera-Valentín, E.G.; Martínez, G.M.; Tolbert, M.A. (March 2019). "Solid-solid hydration and dehydration of Mars-relevant chlorine salts: Implications for Gale Crater and RSL locations". Icarus. 321: 1–13. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2018.10.034.
- ^ a b Chevrier, Vincent F.; Altheide, Travis S. (2008-11-18). "Low temperature aqueous ferric sulfate solutions on the surface of Mars". Geophysical Research Letters. 35 (22): L22101. doi:10.1029/2008GL035489. ISSN 0094-8276.
- ^ Chevrier, Vincent F.; Hanley, Jennifer; Altheide, Travis S. (2009-05-20). "Stability of perchlorate hydrates and their liquid solutions at the Phoenix landing site, Mars". Geophysical Research Letters. 36 (10): L10202. doi:10.1029/2009GL037497. ISSN 0094-8276.
- ^ Gough, R.V.; Chevrier, V.F.; Tolbert, M.A. (May 2014). "Formation of aqueous solutions on Mars via deliquescence of chloride–perchlorate binary mixtures". Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 393: 73–82. doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2014.02.002.
- ^ Hecht, M. H.; Kounaves, S. P.; Quinn, R. C.; West, S. J.; Young, S. M. M.; Ming, D. W.; Catling, D. C.; Clark, B. C.; Boynton, W. V.; Hoffman, J.; DeFlores, L. P. (2009-07-03). "Detection of Perchlorate and the Soluble Chemistry of Martian Soil at the Phoenix Lander Site". Science. 325 (5936): 64–67. doi:10.1126/science.1172466. ISSN 0036-8075.
- ^ Kounaves, Samuel P.; Hecht, Michael H.; Kapit, Jason; Quinn, Richard C.; Catling, David C.; Clark, Benton C.; Ming, Douglas W.; Gospodinova, Kalina; Hredzak, Patricia; McElhoney, Kyle; Shusterman, Jennifer (May 2010). "Soluble sulfate in the martian soil at the Phoenix landing site: SULFATE AT THE PHOENIX LANDING SITE". Geophysical Research Letters. 37 (9): n/a–n/a. doi:10.1029/2010GL042613.
- ^ Chevrier, Vincent (2022). "Limited stability of multi-component brines on the surface of Mars". The Planetary Science Journal.