by Elana Spivack
December 26, 2021
https://www.inverse.com/science/mars-core
Introduction:
(Inverse) MARS SCIENCE DISCOVERIES can be so superficial — the search for water caches, terrestrial sampling, and other technical marvels tend to take place on the surface of the Red Planet (or a little above it). But while NASA’s Perseverance rover scoots around in Mars’s dust and gravel, there’s plenty deep within the planet itself that’s worth learning about, too. Like the fact that Mars’ inner core is perhaps the most metal place on the entire planet.
THE DISCOVERY — Earlier this year, three papers published in the journal Science confirmed that Mars’ core is made of molten metal. The finding came as a result of recording Marsquakes — the Martian equivalent of earthquakes here on Earth.
Mark Panning, the JPL project scientist for NASA’s InSight lander, and his colleagues drew from seismometer data to find the thickness and potential structure of the planet’s crust, the temperature of the planet’s mantle, and make the first direct seismological confirmation of the planet’s core — hence the trio of papers.
HOW THEY DID IT — Scientists know about Earth’s insides as a result of seismology — basically studying earthquakes and other internal rumblings as a means to peer at the processes driving them — but this method hasn’t really been an option for researchers studying other planets until very recently.
Then in 2018, a seismometer landed on Mars as part of the NASA InSight (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) mission — and it has been recording Marsquakes ever since.
InSight and its tiny “mole” heat probe friend are seen in this illustration.
NASA