Is there H2O water ice on Mars or is it dry ice (solid carbon dioxide)?

Question

I see news stories about water on Mars but they mean H20 water right? I've had this argument with a friend. I don't thinkthey found H2O water and he thinks they have. He says what else could ice be made of? But there is dry ice which is chemically different right?

Can anyone confirm this either way; and also, would you be so kind to link a website setting the matter straight?

Thanks

Answer 1

Simply put, we don't know. We have evidence, but no proof. That will have to wait until more advanced probes are sent.

Answer 2

Current observations sugest that there is H2O ice on Mars, as well as CO2 ice. These observations have been made by radar readings and from chemical analysis by our probes. However, we don't know how much is there, but some estimates are that if melted it would leave a layer of water 20 feet deep nearly all over the surface.

Answer 3

The first thing worth noting here is that "there is no heat loss to the surroundings", therefore all the heat transfer is from the hot water to the dry ice, which causes it to vapourise. Now the total amount of heat transferred during the specified scenario is reflected in the change in the temperature of the water. The equation (that you should have already seen) that describes this situation is: q = mcΔT where q is the heat change, m the mass of the substance water, c the specific heat capacity of water and ΔT the change in temperature. c = 4.186 J/g/K m = 15000 g (as 1 mL of water = 1 g at ambient conditions) ΔT = (16 - 85) K = -69 K Now you can calculate q. The next step is to calculate how much dry ice is required to cause that amount of heat change. This is really simple (dimensional analysis should tell you right away how to do this) given ΔH(sublimation) = 33.9 kJ/mol: n(dry ice) = q / ΔH(sublimation) Where n(dry ice) is the amount of dry ice need in moles. To obtain the final answer you clearly have to multiply that number by the molar mass of carbon dioxide (dry ice). :) Hope that helped.

Answer 4

There is both frozen water and dry ice on Mars. 'Dry ice' is chemically different, and would never form a liquid. It tends to sublimate (go directly from a solid to a gas) at Earthly and Martian pressures.

Answer 5

Both water ice and dry ice are present on Mars, along with small quantities of liquid water. Here are two articles for you.

Answer 6

There is a huge abundance of water ice on Mars, at it's polar regions, in it's clouds, in craters, and underground frozen. This has been proven by spacecraft, and the martian polar caps foundations are made of water ice. Their is ALSO dry ice(frozen carbon dioxide) at the polar caps, and this covers the layer of water ice in the winter, when the temperatures become cold enough for dry ice to form. The martian air, made mostly of carbon dioxide can drop to -160 degrees F, therefore 1/3rd of it freezes out onto the surface as dry ice. This covers the layer of water ice, but does not remove it, because at the poles, it stays cold enough for water ice to exist year round. In the summer, the dry ice melts, leaving the layer of water. Here is a list of ice, water and dry ice on mars.

Water Ice:
1)North and South polar cap
2)Under the surface of mars, it extends almost to the equator
3)Forms high cirrus clouds much like here on Earth
4)occansionally flows as a liquid during the martian summer for short periods, but this is rare
5)Water vapor as well as ice crystals are components of the martian atmosphere

Dry ice (Carbon Dioxide)
1)North and South polar cap, during the winter
2)Makes the highest clouds on mars, and they have a slight blue color
3)Forms in craters during the winter
4)Carbon dioxide constitutes 95% of Mars' air

Hope this helps. Explain to your friend that Mars has alot of water...it's just frozen, and alot of dry ice too...just in the winter though, because during the summer it's too warm for Carbon dioxide to freeze.

Answer 7

I worked for NASA for 17 years before I retired. Looked at many pictures of Mars and there many dry rivers beds and some very large canyons . They appear to of been cut by water. Don't know where it is now but it should be there.

Answer 8

Agreed with the above poster; more information here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars

Answer 9

0101010101 NO BUT I WAS FROM THERE ONCE! 0101010101