Why go to Mars?

“Either we’re a multi-planet species and out there exploring the stars, or we are a single-planet species waiting around for some eventual extinction event.”
- Elon Musk

Curiosity has always been a driving factor in human exploration. In the video below, Christina argues why the future of human exploration should take place in the vastness of space.

Challanges facing moss on Mars

Temperature

Since temperature fluctuates on all areas of Mars, it is vital for the survival of our moss that we test its ability to survive scathing changes in temperatures. In order for a moss to survive on the surface of Mars, it will have to be able to survive a wide range of conditions not normally encountered on earth. One of these is wildly fluctuating temperatures. Just as on Earth, the temperatures on Mars vary with the seasons. At the Equator, the warmest month (October) usually doesn’t get much hotter than 4°C, while the coldest month (March) usually gets up to around -23°C. Unlike on Earth, however, these seasonal variations pale in comparison with the variations observed in the day-to-day cycle. Between the heat of day and the chill of night, it is not unusual to see fluctuations on the order of 60°C - 80°C. In October, for instance, while the hottest average day temperature is the aforementioned 4°C, the coldest average night temperature is a teeth-rattling -73°C.

Mars surface temperature at night

Atmosphere[1]

The atmosphere of Mars has changed drastically during the planet’s history. The atmosphere has become thin which has caused the pressure to drop dramatically causing liquid water to become unstable. The cause of the loss of martian atmosphere is still unexplained and puzzles astronomers all over the world.

The martian atmosphere contains a much larger amount of carbon dioxide than on earth, at around 95.9%. The other abundant gases include oxygen (1.45%), Argon (0.0193%) and Nitrogen (0.0189%), as well as traces of carbon monoxide, neon and xeon.

UV-light

Pressure

Due to the loss of martian atmosphere a few billion years ago the pressure on Mars has also dropped. The pressure on Mars is now 600 pc which is only about 0.1% of the pressure on earth. However the pressure may also vary by as much as 25%.

Graph showing the change in pressure on Mars according to location. Source: http://www.mhhe.com/physsci/astronomy/fix/student/chapter11/11f34.html

Soil Composition

References:
[1] Kajtar, Rita (2014).Mars Environmental Chamber for Simulation of Weathering Processes on Mars. Unpublished master's thesis, University of Copenhagen