Would it be possible to heat Mars by increasing the amount of ozone in the atmosphere? If so, best possible w

Question

Would it be possible to heat Mars by increasing the amount of ozone in the atmosphere? If so, best possible way to do it?

Answer 1

The problem with heating Mars is that it's not a big enough planet to do 2 important things. First, a larger planet will be able to hold a thicker atomosphere. The second problem is that it's core became solid, so it no longer produces a strong magnetic field. The Earths magnetic field keeps the solar wind from slowly stripping away our atomosphere.

So to heat up Mars, you'd be better off hauling lots of astroids onto it and then the C02 that's already there would probably be able to start helping retain heat.

But living under the ground on Mars could be accetable and provide and even tempature (just as it does here on Earth).

Answer 2

First, terraform Mars, then the ozone would occur naturally. By adding a few things on Mars, terraforming could be possible.
Photosynthetic bacteria, could be released near the equatorial areas, along with other autotrophic(extreme area) bacteria, that would begin producing oxygen, which in turn produces ozone.
In the stratosphere oxygen would be bombarded by high energy ultraviolet radiation, splitting the oxygen molecule into two free oxygen atoms that in turn strike oxygen molecules producing ozone molecules.
In addition to ozone, other greenhouse type gases would help to warm the planet, and as the buildup of gasses expanded, so too would the area around the equatorial warm spots expand to more of the planet, producing more of the needed oxygen and other gasses that would further heat the planet. Mars will never get as warm as earth, but it could be possible to live there through genetic alteration and acclimation.
Since the planet has weak gravity, and little or no magnetic field is available to prevent the stripping away of the produced atmosphere, the new atmosphere would have to constantly be renewed to compensate for this. As technology expands so too does our understanding of how to accomplish things like terraforming. It may be we will never terraform the whole planet, but we should be able to have enclosed domes over some craters that would support life out in the "open" under the pressurization. I vote for the latter, then work towards the former. ;)
...jj

Answer 3

Fred is terribly, terribly wrong, and so is Andyoptic. Ozone IS a greenhouse gas, as are all molecules with three or more atoms. Ozone absorbs infrared at a peak of 10 microns, while CO2 absorbs at a peak wavelength of 15 microns. The major greenhouse gas in the Earth's atmosphere is H2O otherwise known as water, whose major absobtion peak is 7 microns. (By the way, Earth currently radiates as a black body with a peak at ~10 microns, placing Ozone right in the center of this heat radiation). Ozone, CO2, methane, SO2, and NOx, as well as artificial CFC's all contribute to the greenhouse gas effect here on Earth.
Mars already has an Ozone layer, created by UV degradation of CO2, mostly, and it is ~1/5 as dense as the Earth's Ozone layer. Adding O2 to the Martian atmosphere would definitely increase the Ozone layer on Mars, and this would have a significant greenhouse effect. Remember that a one Earth atmosphere pressure on the ground on Mars translates to an atmosphere (and Ozone layer) that is 2 and 1/2 times thicker or deeper than here on Earth, due to Mars's much weaker gravity. So placing a factory on Mars that smelts huge amounts of Iron ore Fe2O3 into steel plus O2 and dumping the O2 into the atmosphere would definitely warm things up, at least a little. And remember, the warmer it gets on Mars, the more CO2 and H2O will escape from the permafrost, further adding to the greenhouse effect and the density of the resulting atmosphere. Mars could have a breathable atmosphere in no time. Furthermore, atmospheric models indicate that it would take many many millions of years for the solar wind to erode away a 2,000mB atmosphere on Mars.

Answer 4

No amount of ozone in the martian or earth atmosphere will lead to any warming. Ozone is NOT a greenhouse gas. The Ozone hole is nothing to do with climate change. Ozone depletion was caused by CFCs which are now mostly banned.

Terestrial Climate change is caused by the rapid release of Carbon which was locked up in fossil fuels over millions of years as part of the Earth's self-regulating feedback mechanism which has kept the oxygen level & temperature suitable for life for millenia.

The Martian atmosphere is already mostly CO2 because the free oxygen has reacted with the iron to give the rust colour. and there are no life processes to change it.

Answer 5

Mars' atmosphere already consists largely of carbon dioxide. If that doesn't produce enough greenhouse effect to warm it up, adding ozone probably wouldn't either.

Increasing the amount of sunlight that penetrates the atmosphere would work better. An array of large orbiting mirrors might do the trick. That would also be easier and cheaper than modifying the planet's atmosphere.

Answer 6

not available because ozone does not reason international warming, carbon dioxide does. And Mars' surroundings already has way extra carbon dioxide in it that Earth's surroundings does. It purely isn't sufficient to make up for the more effective distance from the solar. Oh, and ozone is purely oxygen interior this way of three atoms in accordance to molecule really of two atoms in accordance to molecule. it really is O3 really of O2. on earth it really is made from commonplace O2 through solar. On mars, there is very nearly no oxygen contained in the ambience from which to make ozone.

Answer 7

for the last time, OZONE DOESN'T AFFECT THE HEAT, the amount of ozone in the atmosphere only affects the amount of UV rays and radiation from the sun that reach the lower parts of the atmosphere.

Also ozone is being DEPLETED in the upper atmosphere, causing more UV rays and radiation from the sun to reach the lower atmosphere where it is harmful to us.

Answer 8

I think the question is pretty irrelevant if you take into account that mars doesn't have a magnetic field to protect it atmosphere (should you try to introduce one) against the solar wind. That is what caused the disappearance of mars' original atmosphere.
So it would be a useless exercise.

Answer 9

Probably. To produce ozone, you need the molecule O3 (three oxygen atoms). This is, on earth, produced by lightning strikes. Soo.....oxygen + electricity = ozone. The electrical field of the lightning does funny things to the electrons in the oxygen atoms, and so 3 of them bind together instead of just 2, which is the only oxygen molecule that exists without lightning's aid.

Answer 10

First of all, you have to know tha t Mars has a thin amtosphere becaus eof its weak magnetic field and it would not be able to hold onto the ozone even if we do produce them.