Mars Special: Beneath planet's surface, Ancient Rainfall and CHAMPS Mission

<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Bedtime Astronomy. Explore the wonders of the cosmos
<v Speaker 1>with our soothing Bedtime Astronomie podcast. Each episode offers a
<v Speaker 1>gentle journey through the stars, planets, and beyond, perfect for
<v Speaker 1>unwinding after a long day. Let's travel through the mysteries
<v Speaker 1>of the universe as you drift off into a peaceful
<v Speaker 1>slumber under the night sky. Mars Special Beneath Planet's Surface,
<v Speaker 1>Ancient Rainfall and Champs Mission Beneath the Surface of Mars.
<v Speaker 1>In the ongoing search to uncover the mysteries of Mars,
<v Speaker 1>a significant leap forward has come from the Jaesaro Crater,
<v Speaker 1>the landing site of NASA's Perseverance Rover. A study led
<v Speaker 1>by an international team of scientists, including doctor Michael Tice
<v Speaker 1>from Texas and m University, has illuminated new aspects of
<v Speaker 1>the Martian surface. By closely analyzing rock samples from the
<v Speaker 1>crater floor, the researchers have begun to piece together the
<v Speaker 1>volcanic and geological past of this ancient terrain. The discoveries
<v Speaker 1>point to a planet with a complex and active history,
<v Speaker 1>one that may have included the conditions necessary to support
<v Speaker 1>microbial life. The Jaesaro Crater was chosen for the Mars
<v Speaker 1>twenty twenty mission with purpose. Once home to a river delta,
<v Speaker 1>it is one of the most promising locations for finding
<v Speaker 1>preserved signs of life. When Perseverance landed on February eighteen,
<v Speaker 1>twenty twenty one, it carried with it a suite of
<v Speaker 1>scientific instruments capable of conducting geological studies in remarkable detail.
<v Speaker 1>Unlike previous rovers, which were limited to visual documentation and
<v Speaker 1>basic compositional data, Perseverance operates more like a mobile laboratory.
<v Speaker 1>One of its most important tools, the Planetary Instrument for
<v Speaker 1>X Ray Litho Chemistry PixL, is an advanced spectrometer that
<v Speaker 1>reveals the chemical makeup of rocky with a level of
<v Speaker 1>precision previously unattainable on another planet. With PixL, the team
<v Speaker 1>focused on rocks in the Moss Formation, a key region
<v Speaker 1>within the crater. What they found was more than just stones,
<v Speaker 1>It was a record of Mars's geological story. Two primary
<v Speaker 1>types of volcanic rock emerged from their analysis. The first
<v Speaker 1>was a dark rock enriched in iron and magnesium, containing
<v Speaker 1>intergrown minerals like pyroxene and feldspar, along with signs of
<v Speaker 1>olivine that had undergone alteration. The second type was a lighter,
<v Speaker 1>potassium rich trachyanzite containing feldspar crystals suspended in a volcanic
<v Speaker 1>ground mass. These diverse compositions point to multiple volcanic episodes,
<v Speaker 1>with each lava flow cooling under slightly different conditions, leaving
<v Speaker 1>distinct chemical fingerprints behind. To understand how these rocks formed,
<v Speaker 1>the researchers applied thermodynamic modeling, simulating the cooling in crystallization
<v Speaker 1>processes that would have shaped them. Their findings suggest that
<v Speaker 1>the rocks underwent a process known as high degree fractional crystallization,
<v Speaker 1>where minerals crystallize out of molten lava at different stages,
<v Speaker 1>changing the composition of the remaining liquid. In some instances,
<v Speaker 1>the lava also appears to have assimilated iron rich material
<v Speaker 1>from the Martian crust. This interaction between molten rock and
<v Speaker 1>crustal materials further complicated the geochemical makeup of the rocks,
<v Speaker 1>mirroring processes that occur in Earth's volcanic systems. What makes
<v Speaker 1>this significant is not only the insight into Mars's volcanic history,
<v Speaker 1>but also what it implies about the planet's capacity to
<v Speaker 1>sustain life. On Earth, prolonged volcanic activity is often accompanied
<v Speaker 1>by hydrothermal systems, which can create environments rich in chemical energy,
<v Speaker 1>environments in which microbial life can thrive. The presence of
<v Speaker 1>similar volcanic price processes on Mars raises the possibility that
<v Speaker 1>early Mars had regions where life could have gained a foothold.
<v Speaker 1>It is not just about the rocks themselves, but the
<v Speaker 1>stories they tell about ancient heat, chemistry, and water. These findings, however,
<v Speaker 1>are just the beginning. Perseverance is collecting core samples of
<v Speaker 1>these Martian rocks and storing them in sealed tubes for
<v Speaker 1>potential return to Earth through a future mission jointly planned
<v Speaker 1>by NASA and the European Space Agency. Once these samples
<v Speaker 1>are brought back, scientists will be able to use Earth
<v Speaker 1>based laboratories to probe their structure, chemistry, and potential biosignatures
<v Speaker 1>with even greater depth. While the rover provides an extraordinary
<v Speaker 1>level of incitu analysis, it is still just a glimpse
<v Speaker 1>of what full laboratory analysis will reveal. Doctor Tyss and
<v Speaker 1>his colleagues believe the technology aboard Perseverance is revolutionizing planetary science.
<v Speaker 1>The ability to examine texture and chemical data at such
<v Speaker 1>a microscopic level on another planet is something that was
<v Speaker 1>unimaginable only a few decades ago. Each sample, each mineral,
<v Speaker 1>each unusual feature, brings new data and new questions. Mars
<v Speaker 1>is no longer a silent and static world. It is
<v Speaker 1>a complex geological landscape, layered with history and shaped by
<v Speaker 1>forces not so different from those found on Earth. The
<v Speaker 1>discoveries in the Jazaro Crater serve as a reminder that
<v Speaker 1>the universe still holds countless stories waiting to be uncovered.
<v Speaker 1>The Martian surface, once thought to be barren and unchanging,
<v Speaker 1>reveals itself as a record of ancient processes that could
<v Speaker 1>have mirrored the early Earth. As scientists continue to decode
<v Speaker 1>these ancient rocks, what we learn about Mars may not
<v Speaker 1>only inform us about a neighboring planet, but about the
<v Speaker 1>origins of our own. The rover's journey has just begun,
<v Speaker 1>and with it, the story of Mars is being written
<v Speaker 1>anew one sample at a time when Mars had rivers.
<v Speaker 1>Mars today, as captured by satellite images, still shows clear
<v Speaker 1>signs of an ancient watery past near the equator. Networks
<v Speaker 1>of channels stretch out from the highlands of the planet,
<v Speaker 1>branching in a way that resembles tree limbs and terminating
<v Speaker 1>in basins that were once lakes or even possibly an ocean.
<v Speaker 1>NASA's Perseverance Rover, which touched down in twenty twenty one,
<v Speaker 1>is currently investigating Jazaro Crater, a location that was once
<v Speaker 1>the site of an ancient lake. In the distant Martian
<v Speaker 1>era known as the Nuekian, a powerful river flowed into Jazaro,
<v Speaker 1>depositing sediment and forming a delta across the crater floor.
<v Speaker 1>The sheer size of the boulders deposited there suggests the
<v Speaker 1>river once carried water several meters deep. These features spark
<v Speaker 1>the curiosity of scientists like Brian Heinek and Tyler Steckel,
<v Speaker 1>who set out to better understand the forces that shaped
<v Speaker 1>this terrain. Together, Heinek and Steckel developed a digital reconstruction
<v Speaker 1>of a section of Mars. To do this, they relied
<v Speaker 1>on a model originally built for studying Earth's geology created
<v Speaker 1>by Gregory Tucker, and adapted it from Martian conditions. Their
<v Speaker 1>team also included Matthew Rossi, another researcher at SU Boulder.
<v Speaker 1>They used this modeling software to simulate how the Martian
<v Speaker 1>landscape might have evolved, especially in regions near the equator.
<v Speaker 1>The simulations introduced water into this synthetic terrain in two
<v Speaker 1>main ways, either through falling precipitation or via melting polar
<v Speaker 1>ice caps, and let the water flow across the landscape
<v Speaker 1>over time spans ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds
<v Speaker 1>of thousands of years. These simulations revealed two very different
<v Speaker 1>versions of the Red planet. When ice caps melted in
<v Speaker 1>the simulation, the resulting valleys and channels primarily began forming
<v Speaker 1>at high elevations near the edges of the former ice,
<v Speaker 1>but when water came from widespread precipitation, the valleys formed
<v Speaker 1>across a much broader range of altitudes, from low lying
<v Speaker 1>areas to regions over eleven thousand feet above Mars average
<v Speaker 1>surface level. The way these valleys emerged varied significantly depending
<v Speaker 1>on the water source. Water from melting ice produced narrow
<v Speaker 1>bands of erosion at specific heights, while rainfall allowed channels
<v Speaker 1>to form almost anywhere. These simulated landscapes were then compared
<v Speaker 1>to real data from Mars collected by NASA's Mars Global
<v Speaker 1>Surveyor and Mars Odyssey missions. The comparison showed that the
<v Speaker 1>simulations based on precipitation matched much more closely with the
<v Speaker 1>actual distribution of Martian valley systems. Although these findings do
<v Speaker 1>not definitively solve the mystery of mars ancient climate, particularly
<v Speaker 1>how the planet was ever warm enough to support rainfall
<v Speaker 1>or snowfall, they do suggest that some form of precipitation
<v Speaker 1>likely shaped much of the Martian surface. For Heinek, the
<v Speaker 1>implications extend beyond Mars itself. He believes that once flowing
<v Speaker 1>water ceased carving through the Martian terrain, the planet entered
<v Speaker 1>a kind of suspended state, preserving surface features that may
<v Speaker 1>reflect what Earth looked like billions of years ago. Champs
<v Speaker 1>delivering small payloads to Mars. NASA's goal of sending humans
<v Speaker 1>to Mars by the end of the next decade under
<v Speaker 1>its Moon to Mars program has sparked a wide array
<v Speaker 1>of technological developments, including a focus on cutting edge propulsion
<v Speaker 1>systems that will reduce the time it takes to get there.
<v Speaker 1>The reduced transit time is crucial not only for speeding
<v Speaker 1>up missions, but also for minimizing astronauts exposure to hazardous
<v Speaker 1>cosmic radiation and the effects of prolonged weightlessness. In addition
<v Speaker 1>to propulsion, NASA is exploring ways to improve waste elimination,
<v Speaker 1>water recycling, cruise safety, and overall mission self sufficiency, aiming
<v Speaker 1>to make deep space travel more sustainable and cost effective.
<v Speaker 1>A crucial part of this effort involves the advancement of
<v Speaker 1>sub kilowatt electric propulsion systems tailored for small spacecraft laying
<v Speaker 1>around five hundred kilograms or less. These propulsion systems, particularly
<v Speaker 1>the electrostatic hall effect thrusters that use solar energy to
<v Speaker 1>ionize inner gases like Xenon, have already demonstrated their potential
<v Speaker 1>through previous programs such as the Planetary Science, Deep Space
<v Speaker 1>Small SAT Studies and Simplex. Drawing from that foundational research,
<v Speaker 1>a new concept called CHAMPS, short for Commercial Hall Propulsion
<v Speaker 1>from Mars Payload Services has emerged, developed by a team
<v Speaker 1>of NASA engineers and scientists from centers like the Glen
<v Speaker 1>Research Center and Goddard Space Flight Center. This initiative proposes
<v Speaker 1>using compact, high efficiency electric thrusters to send small science
<v Speaker 1>payloads to Mars at lower costs and on more flexible schedules.
<v Speaker 1>Than ever before. The central propulsion system proposed for Champs
<v Speaker 1>is based on the H seventy one m thruster, a miniaturized,
<v Speaker 1>high performance version of larger solar electric propulsion systems capable
<v Speaker 1>of pushing a nearly four hundred and fifty kilogram spacecraft
<v Speaker 1>while consuming a relatively small amount of propellant. This technology
<v Speaker 1>has been adopted and developed commercially through Northwrook Grumman's NNGHT
<v Speaker 1>one x thruster, which the Champs missions would employ instead
<v Speaker 1>of relying on rare and expensive launch opportunities. Were Mars
<v Speaker 1>is the primary target, CHAMPS missions would launch as secondary
<v Speaker 1>payloads on flights originally intended for the Moon, such as
<v Speaker 1>those under the Commercial Lunar Payload Services Program. Once launched,
<v Speaker 1>the spacecraft would perform a gravity assist maneuver around the
<v Speaker 1>Moon and temporarily enter a near rectilinear halo orbit. This
<v Speaker 1>maneuver not only concerts fuel but buys time until a
<v Speaker 1>favorable Earth Mars alignment presents it it, allowing for an
<v Speaker 1>efficient trajectory toward the red planet. The mission plan includes
<v Speaker 1>a series of low thrust maneuvers and cruising phases spanning
<v Speaker 1>more than a year before the spacecraft reaches Mars. Upon arrival,
<v Speaker 1>it will enter a low orbit just fifteen kilometers above
<v Speaker 1>the surface, enabling complete coverage of the Martian equator every
<v Speaker 1>five souls. In addition to observing the planet, the spacecraft
<v Speaker 1>will study dymos, one of Mars to moons. After its
<v Speaker 1>two year primary mission, the craft will shift to a
<v Speaker 1>higher orbit called aerosynchronous that enables it to maintain continuous
<v Speaker 1>atmospheric observation and act as a data relay for other
<v Speaker 1>surface missions. The scientific payload for CHAMPS includes instruments modeled
<v Speaker 1>after those already used in Martian exploration, such as visible
<v Speaker 1>and ultraviolet imagers, thermal infrared radiometers, and near infrared spectrometers.
<v Speaker 1>With this suite, CHAMPS will build detailed profiles of atmospheric pressure, temperature,
<v Speaker 1>aerosol content, and chemical composition, including water, vapor, and ozone.
<v Speaker 1>It will also track dust storms, cloud patterns, and weather
<v Speaker 1>changes across seasons, while probing plasma conditions and magnetic fields
<v Speaker 1>influenced by solar activity. These observations will help scientists answer
<v Speaker 1>unresolved questions about Mars atmospheric behavior, the transfer of volatile
<v Speaker 1>compounds between its surface and skies and how solar radiation
<v Speaker 1>affects its climate. On both global and regional scales. The
<v Speaker 1>mission aims to reveal the dynamic interactions among atmospheric layers
<v Speaker 1>and deepen our understanding of how weather operates on the planet. Importantly,
<v Speaker 1>the Champ's concept also supports NASA's broader Mars Exploration program,
<v Speaker 1>which emphasizes frequent, affordable missions to adapt quickly to new
<v Speaker 1>discoveries and engage a wider scientific community. This model not
<v Speaker 1>only only reduces costs and improves mission flexibility, but also
<v Speaker 1>aligns with the agency's strategy to democratize access to planetary
<v Speaker 1>science and ensure that Mars exploration continues with momentum and
<v Speaker 1>scientific rigor well into the future. The d