Sometimes the best way to explore Mars is to stay at home. There is no alternative for actual flights to Mars, but the pieces of Mars that made the trip to Earth can be explored on our planet. In particular, in Antarctica: NASA scientists have found a bunch of Martian meteorites there. However, they are not the first to search for meteorites in the polar regions of the Earth. Already in the 9th century, people from the polar northern regions used iron from meteorites for tools and hunting equipment. Meteorite iron was traded over long distances. But for NASA, the meteorite hunt takes place in Antarctica.
The cold temperatures of Antarctica have preserved meteorites for a long time, making them valuable artifacts in the attempt to understand Mars. Meteorites tend to accumulate where creeping glaciers move them. When ice meets an obstacle in the form of a stone in its path, it leaves meteorites with it, so it becomes easier to find them. Recently arrived meteorites are also easy to spot on the surface of Antarctic ice.
The United States began collecting meteorites in Antarctica in 1976, and to date, more than 21,000 meteorites and their fragments have been discovered around the world. More meteorites have been found in Antarctica than in the rest of the world. And the discovered meteorites have been made available to scientists around the world.
Collecting meteorites in Antarctica is not a walk in the park. This is physically grueling and dangerous work. Antarctica is a harsh environment to live and work, and it takes serious planning and teamwork just to survive. However, the scientific return is very high, so NASA does not stop searching.
Meteorites from the Moon and other celestial bodies also arrive on Earth and collect in Antarctica. They can tell us a lot about the evolution and formation of the solar system, the origin of the chemical components necessary for life and the origin of the planets themselves.
How do Martian meteorites get to Earth?
For a meteorite from Mars to hit Earth, several things must happen. First, a meteorite must collide with Mars. It must be large enough and fall to the surface with sufficient force so that the stones thrown from the surface of Mars pick up sufficient speed to overcome the gravity of Mars.
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From the point of view of science
Part of the scientific value of meteorites lies not in their source, but in the time of their formation. Some meteorites have flown through space for so long that they have become time travelers in some way. These ancient meteorites can tell scientists a lot about the early solar system.
Meteorites from Mars tell scientists interesting things. Because they have experienced entry into the Earth's atmosphere, they can educate engineers about the dynamics of such a journey and help them design spacecraft. Because they contain chemical signatures and elements unique to Mars, they can also teach mission specialists how to survive on Mars.
In addition, they can shed light on one of the biggest mysteries in space exploration: was there life on Mars? A Martian meteorite, found in the Sahara Desert in 2011, contained ten times more water than other Martian meteorites, and further strengthened the hypothesis that Mars was once a humid world suitable for life.
NASA's Antarctica meteorite search program has been in existence for many years, and there is no reason to end it, as this is the only way to get Mars samples to the laboratory so far. Scientists put together these samples like a puzzle and one day they will put together a complete picture. May be.