Physics
Scientific paper
Sep 1977
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1977jgr....82.4635o&link_type=abstract
Journal of Geophysical Research, vol. 82, Sept. 30, 1977, p. 4635-4639.
Physics
109
Atmospheric Composition, Gas Analysis, Mars Atmosphere, Mars Surface, Planetary Composition, Viking Lander Spacecraft, Abundance, Air Sampling, Isotopes, Mass Ratios, Meteoritic Composition, Rare Gases, Space Exploration
Scientific paper
The current status is summarized of investigations of the composition of the Martian atmosphere, in which use was made of the mass spectrometers that function as the analytical component of the molecular analysis experiments on the two Viking landers. The following points seem well established: N2, Ar-40, Ne, Kr, Xe, and the primordial isotope of Ar are present. The present atmosphere of Mars represents only a small fraction of the total amount of volatiles outgassed by the planet, so that high surface pressure and abundant water may have been present. The noble gases in the Martian atmosphere exhibit a relative abundance pattern similar to that in the earth's atmosphere and (except for Xe) to that in the primordial component of meteorites. The existence of a 'planetary component' is thus proven, supporting the arguments of those who favor a fractionation of noble gases prior to the formation of the planets. In spite of these similarities, the isotopic ratios of nitrogen, argon, and xenon indicate that the histories of the Martian and the earth's atmospheres have been very different.
Biemann Klaus
Biller J. E.
Howarth D. W.
Lafleur Arthur L.
Owen Theodore
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