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ARRoGANT CoURiERS WiTH ESSaYS
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Grade Level: Type of Work Subject/Topic is on:
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[ ]6-8 [ ]Class Notes [Exploring Mars ]
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[x]9-10 [ ]Cliff Notes [ ]
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[ ]11-12 [x]Essay/Report [ ]
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[ ]College [ ]Misc [ ]
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Dizzed: 07/94 # of Words:2996 School:Public State:NY
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<EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>><3E><><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>><3E><><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>>Chop Here><3E><><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>><3E><><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>><3E><><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>><3E><><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>
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MARS
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SURFACE EXPLORATION
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One question that is being asked by people is, "Why go to Mars"? The
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reasons are very simple. People want to gain recognition of how they were
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the first people who went to Mars and opened up a whole new world and most
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importantly to move forward in economics.
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As humans waste the precious materials and resources found on this
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planet we have to consider going to other planets to explore for materials
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and energy resources. Mars would be the first area for industrial
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development and mining in the "new world".
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There are talks that by the end of this century that a manned mission
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to Mars should take place. We must start preparing ourselves properly in
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order to explore Mars better. Scientists and researchers hopes when
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exploring Mars is to find interesting minerals or matter that will help us
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understand what Mars was like millions and millions of years ago.
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The first manned mission to Mars will be more complex then that of the
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first Moon landing which the main goal for going to the Moon was to just
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land safely. The main thing that researchers and scientists are striving
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for is exploratory, searching for useful raw materials such as water and at
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the same time building up an extensive scientific picture of Mars-its state
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at the present moment, its history and what the future developments are
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going to be.
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As astronauts journey to Mars and finally reach there the main concern
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and top priority when landing will be the astronauts safety. There will be
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more flexibility when choosing a landing site. The astronauts will decide
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where they want to land but must take into consideration that the roving
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vehicles would be able to provide extended range when travelling on the
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surface of Mars. This most probably would ensure that the sites that are
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in the scientists interest would easily be accessible.
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Possible landing sites must be chosen under one goal, that would be
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the overall understanding of the surface and not by a place that looks
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attractive or has special features even if they seem alluring. The things
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that have to be taken in account for possible landing sites are:
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- guaranteeing that the explorers will touch down at the place which is
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specified;
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- choosing a place where possible interesting geological features may be found;
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- choosing an area where rocks have recently been exposed;
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- a certain area must be specified of where the roving vehicles may go.
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Regions on Mars that have extensive dune fields and barely any
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bedrock, the surface mobilities should be within a few kilometres to
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guarantee that samples can be obtained without any difficulty. Landing
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sites that have easy access to more than one type of interesting terrain
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has an advantage but unfortunately these sites lean to be more on the rough
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side and might pose to be a weighty hazard and obstacles might be in the
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way of roving vehicles.
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There are a possible of ten prime landing sites that might be chosen
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when a manned mission to Mars has taken place. The Kasei and Mangala
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valles are made up of striking features which seem to have channels that
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are evidently engraved by flowing water from the past. Extensive studies
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would provide significant clues to why Mars lost reserves of water. These
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locations would offer and give explorers a big advantage as this area is
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close to the large volcanoes and volcanic plains that are near the equator,
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which will have affected their geology a tremendous deal.
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There are other riveting sites other than these, but they are
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difficult to reach for a manned mission to Mars. The Polar region sites
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are precluded for manned missions because fuel would be expensive to change
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form an initial parking orbit to a tilted orbit in order to make it
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possible to land there. With non-polar sites, it would be difficult to
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land on a gigantic volcanoes or canyons. The problems with visiting the
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southern hemisphere regions is that it is less attractive then the northern
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hemisphere and the terrain is much more rougher. These areas are also the
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origin of dust storms and if a spacecraft were to land there it would be
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foolish. Although these regions are not going to be explored by explorers,
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at a later time or date they will be visited by long-range vehicles, with
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men or without, sent from bases elsewhere.
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Once the space craft has landed on the Mars and a go-ahead for a long
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stay has been given the crew they will eat and rest for their venture on
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the surface the next day. As walkers emerge onto Mars they will have to
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lower visors which is coated with a thin, transparent layer of gold which
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eliminates unsafe ultraviolet radiation.
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As they emerge on the surface they will go around their spacecraft and
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look for any damage done and then will grab soil samples in case the
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explorers have to make a quick retreat. At the same time they will unload
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a roving vehicle in which they will travel.
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On foot, explorers would be able to cover a little more than a mile
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from the base that they would have set up. If rovers (land vehicles) were
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taken along then more area could be covered during exploring the planet and
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then would easily be able carried back to their base.
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When travelling across the Martian surface there will be many
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difficulties encountered by the explorers when using the roving vehicles.
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On a manned mission there will be two kinds of roving vehicles one for
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smooth surfaces and one for not so smooth surfaces in an effort to increase
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the range of exploration. Unmanned rovers might have the same idea as the
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Soviet rover which has six wheels, nuclear-powered design and weighing
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several hundred pounds and each rover would be equipped with a standard set
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of sensors. Several rovers would be dispatched and controlled possiblly by
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an orbiting satellite. After the crew has left Mars the rover would still
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probe around Mars and collect samples. The rover would be controlled from
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earth.
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Larger manned rovers will also be needed for transporting up to six
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hundred and eighty kilogram loads on forty kilometre journeys round trip.
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They should be able to go over twenty degree slopes and be able to climb
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one foot boulders. Even these rovers would be limited. For more vast
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exploration a vehicle with a laboratory would be sent. The weight of the
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rover would be between four to five tons but it would be able to transport
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two or three crew members for as long as thirty days. The range of the
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rover would be 100 kilometres from their base and reach speeds up to
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thirty-two kilometres per hour and carry two tons of equipment. In the
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Soviet unmanned mission to Mars balloons will be essential when the soviets
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arrive there. They have many advantages such as being simple, cheap and
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light and would be able to cover thousands of kilometres of land in a few
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weeks. After each balloon is unpacked the crew would test its instruments
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by plugging it into standard test equipment and then attach a thin plastic
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object to it and inflate it with helium which would be in a pressure bottle
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and then release the balloon and let it drift independently. The heights
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that the balloon could be able to reach would depend on its volume, the
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weight of the payload that is in the balloon and the atmospheric
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temperature which changes during the course of the day.
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Later Manned Mars missions would have planes to explore the surface.
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Studies have shown that a powered aircraft would be able to drop scientific
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packages, penetrators and even deliver materials needed by parties that are
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exploring the planet.
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After landing on Mars the crew would bolt together the plane. It
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would look like large powered glider and would be launched by a catapult or
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rockets. The plane would have fifteen horse power engine and it would be
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driven by steam which would be generated by the chemical breakdown of
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hydrazine.
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The tremendous benefit of having a Mars plane is that it can be
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reused, it would be easy to manoeuvre and the range the plane would be able
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to travel. Maybe one day in a future mission planes would be able to glide
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over the surface of the planet which would benefit scientific surface
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exploration.
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When the explorers are on the planet their days will be long and
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exhausting. Human explorers can explore more efficiently and more
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thoroughly than robots can. Humans are more adaptable than robots. Humans
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would be able to assess a huge assortment of situations faster and would be
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able to adjust to their actions accordingly to what has to be done. A
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trained geologist with a rock hammer can accumulate more samples that would
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be available around the planet in an hour than an automated rover would be
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able to do in a year.
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Humans will be extremely valuable in the search for life on the
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planet. A professional astronaut would have the skills to easily spot a
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protected site that would be favourable to life. An example of this would
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be a spot sheltered by a rock. Equipment which is automatic that astronauts
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have is better for things like, repetitive measurements which would be
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stretched over long periods of time.
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Scientific research will be divided into two main categories. There
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would be a day to day exploration by the astronauts which would have more
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difficult tasks. They would also be responsible for long-term monitoring by
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automatic packages which would be left behind when they leave the planet.
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The main concern for the astronauts would be geological investigation
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of the planet. There might be one or more geologists in a mission to Mars.
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Teams of geologists at mission control will plan exploration traverses by
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using the orbiter's to take pictures of the surface. These pictures will
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produce a route map that would help the astronauts while they are exploring
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the planet. The astronauts will not be just responsible to collect samples
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and bring them home but also they must study the rocks while on the planet
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and conduct some analyses.
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The things that astronauts are looking for is the chemical and mineral
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composition of the rocks which would provide them with the information on
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the geological history of Mars, at which places were the rocks formed, at
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which temperatures and pressures were they formed, development of the
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atmosphere and the history of water on Mars. Necessary information will be
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profited from the rocks that are on the surface, but when drilling deep
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into the ground and dislodging the rock, it will uncover the historical
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development of the regions geology.
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Each day the astronauts job will be to set on the surface in a rover
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which would contain standard geological tools like hammers, chisels, rakes,
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sieves and tongs which would enable them to pick up essential rocks even if
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they seem awkward to pick up with their space suits on. Connected to their
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space suits there will be a gnomon. This unique device is like a tripod
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with a free-hanging central rod, which is able to photograph against each
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sample before it is dislocated from the surface so the exact location is
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know to the astronauts. This photograph shows the scale of each of the
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objects removed, slop of the ground and its shadow that indicates the
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direction of the Sun. A colour pattern will be attached to the photograph
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which allow scientists on Earth to reconstruct the colours which surround
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the object removed. This is crucial because cameras sometimes tend to
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distort the colour to some degree.
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After each sample is photographed their locations would be carefully
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written down. The astronaut will then place the samples in hermetically
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sealed containers. Geologists would highly recommend that a percentage of
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the sample be kept refrigerated at Marslike temperatures to prevent the
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soil sample to change on the way back to earth. The astronauts rover would
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stop every few hundred feet and soil samples would be tested automatically.
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Drilling around the planet would be carried out on a regular basis.
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This would be one of the astronauts most vigorous activities. The rover of
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the astronaut will carry electrical powered drills and a supply of
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aluminium tube sections. The drill will be similar to jack-hammers used in
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construction on Earth. The drill will be powered by a compressor using
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Mars' carbon dioxide atmosphere.
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Mars' internal structure will be better understood when scientists
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find out the rate of heat flow from the interior. A method of doing this
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is by thermometers which would be placed at different depths of Mars.
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Little heaters would be positioned near thermometers which would reveal how
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heat flows through the material that makes up the surface layers.
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Most probably on a trip to Mars there will be complicated apparatus'
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for extensive analyses of soil. An electron scanning microscope would
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probably be used to look for any tiny fossils and aid in hopes of
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distinguish any minerals. An X-ray fluorescence spectrometer will be used
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to record the X-rays emitted by materials when they are irradiated by a
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radioactive source which will discover the materials present. There also
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will be a combined gas chromatography and a mass spectrometer which will
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separate and measure the gases that is driven off when a sample is heated
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When humans and rovers finally get to the poles, their top priority
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will be to get samples of the core which will be taken from the layers of
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deposits of ice and dust (which is millions of years old). This would
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probably have a record of how the climate has changed over hundreds of
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million of years.
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There are numerous fascinating surface structures of Mars and when
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explorers do go to Mars it will be interesting to see what information they
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bring back about the places that have already been identified and the
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things and places that remain a mystery to us. These places include the
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volcanoes, the north and south poles of Mars, the equatorial canyons, the
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unique craters, basins etc. All these places when studied will help us get
|
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|
a better understanding of the planet which has amazed us from pictures that
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|
were taken from non manned missions.
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|
The volcanoes on the planet are the most startling features of Mars.
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|
There are many volcanoes on Mars but the most sensational is found near the
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|
equatorial region of Tharsis. On the planet, volcanoes have been around
|
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|
much of the planet's history. The general shape hints that eruptions of
|
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|
fluid lava has very small amounts of ash in it. The chemical composition
|
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|
of the terrestrial volcanoes on the planet shows that lava and the rate at
|
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|
which the volcanoes erupted affected the volcanoes's final structure.
|
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|
|
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|
The craters of Mars have a huge ranges from little as a several meters
|
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|
across to huge broad basins which are up to hundreds of kilometres in
|
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|
diameter. The southern hemisphere contains hardly any craters which is
|
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|
visible but in the northern hemisphere there an abundant amount of craters.
|
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|
|
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|
There are about sixteen basins on Mars each one larger than0 two
|
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|
hundred and fifty kilometres in diameter somewhere on the surface of Mars.
|
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|
Each basin appears to be vast and multi-ringed. Some basins are fairly new
|
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|
but the others are significantly old which look considerable eroded
|
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|
|
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|
There are many striking features of Mars but we must understand the
|
|||
|
dilemma that is on Mars about the water. There are many things on the
|
|||
|
surface of Mars that look like water channels. Many years ago scientists
|
|||
|
thought that these channels were made by erosion, by lava, or the wind
|
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|
might have made these channels but this no longer holds true today.
|
|||
|
Scientists know that water did once exist in huge quantities by the visible
|
|||
|
channels of Mars.
|
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|
|
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|
We have found out that water did once exist on Mars but where has it
|
|||
|
all gone? Unfavourable scientists can only take a guess by what is know
|
|||
|
about the planet and then estimate at how much water Mars once had, how
|
|||
|
much of the water escaped on the surface and how much of it is hidden to
|
|||
|
the naked eye.
|
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|
|
|||
|
The amount of water that is on Mars is negligible. The polar caps of
|
|||
|
Mars contain some water but they are mixed with frozen carbon dioxide and
|
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|
dust so the quantity of water is not known. The permafrost underground is
|
|||
|
another water supply. The colder the conditions of Mars then the more
|
|||
|
chance of finding permafrost under the surface of Mars. There are
|
|||
|
estimates that at the poles the permafrost is well up to eight kilometres
|
|||
|
thick and lie just a few centimetres below the surface. Near the equator
|
|||
|
the permafrost is estimated to be up to, two to three kilometres thick and
|
|||
|
just a few metres deep.
|
|||
|
|
|||
|
When a trip to Mars takes place and in the near future it will many
|
|||
|
scientist, researchers and the people will be excited to learn what the
|
|||
|
planet is like. There are many fascinating things on Mars that still
|
|||
|
remain a mystery today and a manned mission to Mars will help us unravel
|
|||
|
these mysteries.
|
|||
|
|
|||
|
|
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|
|
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|
BIBLIOGRAPHY
|
|||
|
Asimov, Isaac. MARS, The Red Planet. New York: Lothrop, Lee and Shepard
|
|||
|
Company. 1977
|
|||
|
|
|||
|
Asimov, Isaac. MARS: Our Mysterious Neighbor. Milwaukee: Gareth Stevens
|
|||
|
publishing. 1988
|
|||
|
|
|||
|
Simon, Seymour. MARS. New York: William Morrow and Company. 1987
|
|||
|
|
|||
|
Frank Miles and Nicholas Booth. Race to Mars. New York: Harper
|
|||
|
and Row publishers. 1988
|