scishow space
How Blocking the Sun Makes Mars Hotter
YouTube: | https://youtube.com/watch?v=oE-ffViGcqU |
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View count: | 41,093 |
Likes: | 2,723 |
Comments: | 76 |
Duration: | 05:30 |
Uploaded: | 2022-12-06 |
Last sync: | 2024-09-24 09:15 |
Citation
Citation formatting is not guaranteed to be accurate. | |
MLA Full: | "How Blocking the Sun Makes Mars Hotter." YouTube, uploaded by , 6 December 2022, www.youtube.com/watch?v=oE-ffViGcqU. |
MLA Inline: | (, 2022) |
APA Full: | . (2022, December 6). How Blocking the Sun Makes Mars Hotter [Video]. YouTube. https://youtube.com/watch?v=oE-ffViGcqU |
APA Inline: | (, 2022) |
Chicago Full: |
, "How Blocking the Sun Makes Mars Hotter.", December 6, 2022, YouTube, 05:30, https://youtube.com/watch?v=oE-ffViGcqU. |
Pre-order your MOM pin all this month here: https://dftba.com/scishow
If we’re going to send people to Mars someday, we’re going to need to be very conscious of the challenges presented in this endeavor. And at the top of that list is the ferocious nature of dust on the barren planet.
Hosted by: Hank Green (he/him)
----------
Huge thanks go to the following Patreon supporter for helping us keep SciShow Space free for everyone forever: Jason A Saslow, David Brooks, and AndyGneiss!
Support SciShow Space by becoming a patron on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SciShowSpace
Or by checking out our awesome space pins and other products over at DFTBA Records: http://dftba.com/scishow
----------
Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet?
SciShow on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@scishow
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Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scishow
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----------
Sources:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/327771960_Analysing_some_Martian_atmospheric_characteristics_associated_with_a_dust_storm_over_the_Lunae_Planum_region_during_October_2014
https://airandspace.si.edu/exhibitions/exploring-the-planets/online/solar-system/mars/wind/dust-devils.cfm
https://earth.gsfc.nasa.gov/climate/data/deep-blue/aerosols
https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/global-maps/MODAL2_M_AER_OD
https://www.earthdata.nasa.gov/learn/find-data/near-real-time/hazards-and-disasters/dust-storms
https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/149926/dusty-differences-between-mars-and-earth
Image Sources:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mars_Greenhouse.jpg
https://mars.nasa.gov/resources/8727/twin-peaks-in-super-resolution-right-eye/
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Viking_Orbiter_2_-_Dust_Storm_over_Thaumasia_-_1977-02-17_(40977373752).png
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/dust-storms-linked-to-gas-escape-from-mars-atmosphere
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Astronaut_working_on_Mars.jpg
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mars_Orbiter_Mission_Over_Mars_(15237158879).jpg
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Animation_of_Mars_Orbiter_Mission_trajectory.gif
https://mars.nasa.gov/resources/a-mars-dust-tower-stands-out/
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dust_storm_co.tif
https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/sandstorm-approaching-merzouga-settlement-in-erg-royalty-free-image/624719836?phrase=dust%20storm&adppopup=true
https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/red-clouds-of-the-dust-royalty-free-image/1180563986?phrase=dust%20storm&adppopup=true
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aerosol_effect_on_cloud_albedo.jpg
https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/illustration/greenhouse-effect-vector-illustration-royalty-free-illustration/1211261147?phrase=greenhouse%20effect%20infographic&adppopup=true
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_THEMIS_Image_of_Mars_DVIDS733363.jpg
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PIA24035-Mars-Avalanche-20190529.jpg
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Syrtis_Major_-_Mars_Orbiter_Mission_(29512601624).png
https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/video/tungurahua-volcano-erupting-stock-footage/473173021?phrase=volcano%20eruption&adppopup=true
https://mars.nasa.gov/resources/21918/curiositys-view-of-the-june-2018-dust-storm/?site=msl
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arsia_Mons_Cloud_-_Mars_Express_-_Flickr_-_jccwrt.png
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Phoenix_Weathers_the_Storm_(2944590390).jpg
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Victoria_Crater,_Cape_Verde-Mars.jpg
If we’re going to send people to Mars someday, we’re going to need to be very conscious of the challenges presented in this endeavor. And at the top of that list is the ferocious nature of dust on the barren planet.
Hosted by: Hank Green (he/him)
----------
Huge thanks go to the following Patreon supporter for helping us keep SciShow Space free for everyone forever: Jason A Saslow, David Brooks, and AndyGneiss!
Support SciShow Space by becoming a patron on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/SciShowSpace
Or by checking out our awesome space pins and other products over at DFTBA Records: http://dftba.com/scishow
----------
Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet?
SciShow on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@scishow
SciShow Tangents Podcast: http://www.scishowtangents.org
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scishow
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/scishow
Instagram: http://instagram.com/thescishow
----------
Sources:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/327771960_Analysing_some_Martian_atmospheric_characteristics_associated_with_a_dust_storm_over_the_Lunae_Planum_region_during_October_2014
https://airandspace.si.edu/exhibitions/exploring-the-planets/online/solar-system/mars/wind/dust-devils.cfm
https://earth.gsfc.nasa.gov/climate/data/deep-blue/aerosols
https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/global-maps/MODAL2_M_AER_OD
https://www.earthdata.nasa.gov/learn/find-data/near-real-time/hazards-and-disasters/dust-storms
https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/149926/dusty-differences-between-mars-and-earth
Image Sources:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mars_Greenhouse.jpg
https://mars.nasa.gov/resources/8727/twin-peaks-in-super-resolution-right-eye/
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Viking_Orbiter_2_-_Dust_Storm_over_Thaumasia_-_1977-02-17_(40977373752).png
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/dust-storms-linked-to-gas-escape-from-mars-atmosphere
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Astronaut_working_on_Mars.jpg
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mars_Orbiter_Mission_Over_Mars_(15237158879).jpg
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Animation_of_Mars_Orbiter_Mission_trajectory.gif
https://mars.nasa.gov/resources/a-mars-dust-tower-stands-out/
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dust_storm_co.tif
https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/sandstorm-approaching-merzouga-settlement-in-erg-royalty-free-image/624719836?phrase=dust%20storm&adppopup=true
https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/red-clouds-of-the-dust-royalty-free-image/1180563986?phrase=dust%20storm&adppopup=true
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aerosol_effect_on_cloud_albedo.jpg
https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/illustration/greenhouse-effect-vector-illustration-royalty-free-illustration/1211261147?phrase=greenhouse%20effect%20infographic&adppopup=true
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_THEMIS_Image_of_Mars_DVIDS733363.jpg
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PIA24035-Mars-Avalanche-20190529.jpg
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Syrtis_Major_-_Mars_Orbiter_Mission_(29512601624).png
https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/video/tungurahua-volcano-erupting-stock-footage/473173021?phrase=volcano%20eruption&adppopup=true
https://mars.nasa.gov/resources/21918/curiositys-view-of-the-june-2018-dust-storm/?site=msl
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arsia_Mons_Cloud_-_Mars_Express_-_Flickr_-_jccwrt.png
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Phoenix_Weathers_the_Storm_(2944590390).jpg
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Victoria_Crater,_Cape_Verde-Mars.jpg
[♪ INTRO] If we're going to send people to Mars one day, there are a lot of challenges we need to prepare for. The planet is cold, barren, and suffocating... the list goes on. But one challenge that might not be at the top of everyone's list is dust. The Red Planet is basically one big desert with wind whipping up dust all the time. Some storms grow so large that dust fills the entire atmosphere, plunging the planet into darkness.
But a bunch of kicked up Martian dust does more than turn day into night. It also causes planet-wide temperature swings. And if we're gonna to spend some time there,
we’d better learn more about how that works. One of the first spacecraft to investigate how Mars’s dust affects the planet's temperature was an Indian spacecraft called the Mars Orbiter Mission…also known as MOM. MOM entered Mars’s orbit back in September of 2014, and it was outfitted with five instruments designed to study the planet’s atmosphere and surface. Lucky for MOM, it didn’t have to wait long to start science-ing. The very next month, it spotted a small-scale dust storm forming in a northern region known as Lunae Planum. Scientists watched the storm grow over the course of a week, move southward toward the equator,
and then disappear a week later, leaving behind a haze of floating dust.
Due to the lack of rain, lower gravity, and a much thinner atmosphere,
Mars’s dust can hang in the air for way longer than Earth’s usually does. The team tracked this dust and its effects over a whole year
and then published their findings in a 2018 paper. The MOM data showed that once dust drifted over the equator,
rising air swept it up into the higher layers of the atmosphere.
Ultimately, the dust reached altitudes of up to 20 kilometers above the surface,
and despite all these particles partly blocking the Sun, the atmosphere
in this region got warmer…as much as 10 degrees Celsius warmer. Not only that, but temperatures rose significantly
faster than they did before the storm, too. As odd as that might sound, scientists weren’t entirely surprised. Because any time a bunch of dust gets thrown up in the air, it can mess with a planet’s climate in one of two ways: It can cool things down or warm things up. Which way things go all comes down to
the properties of the dust and how it interacts with sunlight. Basically, whenever you have tiny particles floating in the air, known as aerosols,
they will both absorb and reflect different amounts of the Sun’s light.
The light that reflects off of them generally just bounces back into space. Since it never reaches the surface, that causes a drop in temperature. But not all sunlight gets bounced away. Some gets absorbed, and eventually re-radiated by whatever particles did the absorbing…either into the atmosphere or
towards the ground, heating things up. In fact, this part is a lot like how greenhouse gases work. A lot of times, Martian dust reflects light right back into space, which causes a cooling effect.
But when the particles are big enough or dark enough in color, they can absorb
a decent amount of sunlight and then re-radiate it, causing a warming effect. Dust also interferes with the radiation leaving Mars. Since Mars’s atmosphere is so thin, it doesn’t act much like a blanket,
trapping heat the way Earth’s does. Normally, its heat really easily radiates back out into space, but when there’s a bunch of dust in the air, it can act more like a blanket. Other factors play a role too, like the altitude of the dust and its location on the night or day side of Mars. In the end, the overall warming or cooling effect
depends on how all these factors stack up. Now we don’t know exactly which factors caused the warming that MOM observed. But its results illustrate how complex this phenomenon can be, and how drastically dust can affect Mars’s climate. Now, this isn’t a completely unfamiliar phenomenon. We get aerosol cooling and heating on Earth, too. Ash from a single volcano can make temperatures drop around the world. And dust over the Sahara can heat up the air over the desert. But the dust storms that tinker with our climate don’t have effects on the same scale as those on Mars.
Earth doesn’t get the planet-wide dust clouds that
blanket the atmosphere for weeks or months at a time. And on Mars, there’s a kind of positive feedback loop. As the dust stays in the atmosphere, heating up the air,
that can build up the temperature difference between
the different regions of the planet and between the ground and the air.
That difference then causes more wind that stirs up more dust,
and the cycle continues. Eventually, enough sunlight gets blocked that
the temperatures do start dropping, which brings the storm to an end. But the dust can still spend enough time in the air
to affect the climate for an extended period of time. What’s fascinating about all this is that Mars has been
barren and dry for billions of years. It doesn’t have a water cycle or thick atmosphere to drive dynamic changes. Instead, its dust rides the drafts, moves energy around, and creates new winds that are constantly reshaping the planet’s surface. So this dust can tell us a lot about how Mars’s surface and atmosphere evolve together… and how these tiny particles shape the whole planet’s climate. Thanks for watching this SciShow Space video!
It marks the end of our year exploring the solar system
with the final pin of 2022, featuring MOM. For the entire month of December, you can find a MOM pin at the link in the description down below or even bundle it with the SciShow pinboard. In the new year, we will offer a different pin starting off a whole new theme. I’m not gonna tell you what it is, but if you buy the MOM pin, I’m sure you will rock it. It’s available for order online where you get all the pins of the month: at DFTBA.com/SciShow. [♪ OUTRO]
But a bunch of kicked up Martian dust does more than turn day into night. It also causes planet-wide temperature swings. And if we're gonna to spend some time there,
we’d better learn more about how that works. One of the first spacecraft to investigate how Mars’s dust affects the planet's temperature was an Indian spacecraft called the Mars Orbiter Mission…also known as MOM. MOM entered Mars’s orbit back in September of 2014, and it was outfitted with five instruments designed to study the planet’s atmosphere and surface. Lucky for MOM, it didn’t have to wait long to start science-ing. The very next month, it spotted a small-scale dust storm forming in a northern region known as Lunae Planum. Scientists watched the storm grow over the course of a week, move southward toward the equator,
and then disappear a week later, leaving behind a haze of floating dust.
Due to the lack of rain, lower gravity, and a much thinner atmosphere,
Mars’s dust can hang in the air for way longer than Earth’s usually does. The team tracked this dust and its effects over a whole year
and then published their findings in a 2018 paper. The MOM data showed that once dust drifted over the equator,
rising air swept it up into the higher layers of the atmosphere.
Ultimately, the dust reached altitudes of up to 20 kilometers above the surface,
and despite all these particles partly blocking the Sun, the atmosphere
in this region got warmer…as much as 10 degrees Celsius warmer. Not only that, but temperatures rose significantly
faster than they did before the storm, too. As odd as that might sound, scientists weren’t entirely surprised. Because any time a bunch of dust gets thrown up in the air, it can mess with a planet’s climate in one of two ways: It can cool things down or warm things up. Which way things go all comes down to
the properties of the dust and how it interacts with sunlight. Basically, whenever you have tiny particles floating in the air, known as aerosols,
they will both absorb and reflect different amounts of the Sun’s light.
The light that reflects off of them generally just bounces back into space. Since it never reaches the surface, that causes a drop in temperature. But not all sunlight gets bounced away. Some gets absorbed, and eventually re-radiated by whatever particles did the absorbing…either into the atmosphere or
towards the ground, heating things up. In fact, this part is a lot like how greenhouse gases work. A lot of times, Martian dust reflects light right back into space, which causes a cooling effect.
But when the particles are big enough or dark enough in color, they can absorb
a decent amount of sunlight and then re-radiate it, causing a warming effect. Dust also interferes with the radiation leaving Mars. Since Mars’s atmosphere is so thin, it doesn’t act much like a blanket,
trapping heat the way Earth’s does. Normally, its heat really easily radiates back out into space, but when there’s a bunch of dust in the air, it can act more like a blanket. Other factors play a role too, like the altitude of the dust and its location on the night or day side of Mars. In the end, the overall warming or cooling effect
depends on how all these factors stack up. Now we don’t know exactly which factors caused the warming that MOM observed. But its results illustrate how complex this phenomenon can be, and how drastically dust can affect Mars’s climate. Now, this isn’t a completely unfamiliar phenomenon. We get aerosol cooling and heating on Earth, too. Ash from a single volcano can make temperatures drop around the world. And dust over the Sahara can heat up the air over the desert. But the dust storms that tinker with our climate don’t have effects on the same scale as those on Mars.
Earth doesn’t get the planet-wide dust clouds that
blanket the atmosphere for weeks or months at a time. And on Mars, there’s a kind of positive feedback loop. As the dust stays in the atmosphere, heating up the air,
that can build up the temperature difference between
the different regions of the planet and between the ground and the air.
That difference then causes more wind that stirs up more dust,
and the cycle continues. Eventually, enough sunlight gets blocked that
the temperatures do start dropping, which brings the storm to an end. But the dust can still spend enough time in the air
to affect the climate for an extended period of time. What’s fascinating about all this is that Mars has been
barren and dry for billions of years. It doesn’t have a water cycle or thick atmosphere to drive dynamic changes. Instead, its dust rides the drafts, moves energy around, and creates new winds that are constantly reshaping the planet’s surface. So this dust can tell us a lot about how Mars’s surface and atmosphere evolve together… and how these tiny particles shape the whole planet’s climate. Thanks for watching this SciShow Space video!
It marks the end of our year exploring the solar system
with the final pin of 2022, featuring MOM. For the entire month of December, you can find a MOM pin at the link in the description down below or even bundle it with the SciShow pinboard. In the new year, we will offer a different pin starting off a whole new theme. I’m not gonna tell you what it is, but if you buy the MOM pin, I’m sure you will rock it. It’s available for order online where you get all the pins of the month: at DFTBA.com/SciShow. [♪ OUTRO]