“Thick Crust of Mars: New Discoveries and Findings by Planetary Scientists”

2023-05-27 20:21:32

This representative image shows Mars in space. – AFP/File

After a strong earthquake on Mars, planetary scientists noticed that its crust was thicker than that of the Earth.

According to a paper awaiting publication in Geophysical Research Letters, crust thickness averages 42 to 56 kilometers, which is 70 percent thicker than the average continental crust on Earth.

The measurement relied on data from NASA’s Internal Landing Instrument, a stationary seismometer that has recorded tidal waves in the interior of Mars for four Earth years.

Last May, the entire Red Planet was shaken by a 4.7-magnitude earthquake that lasted more than 6 hours.

“We were really lucky to have this earthquake,” said seismologist Toyon Kim of ETH Zurich.

Kim and his colleagues also confirmed the thickness of the planet’s entire crust with the help of InSight, which recorded seismic waves from earthquakes that hit the planet three times.

A replica of the Mars lander’s interior is on display at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California on November 26, 2018. – AFP

According to the team’s results – aside from the crust being thicker than Earth’s and the Moon’s – it is uneven across Mars.

This discovery may explain the large difference in elevation between the north and south of the planet.

According to the topographic and gravity data of the orbits of Mars, the northern hemisphere of the planet is much smaller than the southern hemisphere.

The researchers think that the difference between the density of rocks on both sides of the planet could be the reason.

However, following Kim and colleagues’ findings, the crust gets thinner in the northern hemisphere, so rocks in both hemispheres may have the same average density.

Also, when calculating the depth of the crust, the team also calculated that most of Mars’ internal heat may have originated in the crust.

Most of this heat comes from radioactive elements such as potassium, uranium and thorium. Between 50 and 70 percent of these elements may be found in the crust.”

This discovery supports the idea that volcanic activity can still be seen in some parts of Mars, refuting claims that “the Red Planet is dead.”

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