MAVEN Finds That Mars’ Atmosphere Has Similarities to Earth’s

Feb. 4, 2020 (EIRNS)—Studying Mars’ atmosphere may explain a phenomenon on Earth. NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft orbiting Mars has found layers in the planet’s atmosphere very similar to layers about 60 miles above the Earth that interfere with radio transmissions, causing unpredictable disruptions. They can’t be easily studied on Earth, but can be on Mars. It is the plasma ionosphere in Earth’s atmosphere that carries the radio waves and can be disrupted by radio signals far from Earth.

Scientists have known about these transient electrically charged layers that form in Earth’s atmosphere for 80 years but have never been able to explain them. The findings by MAVEN were “unexpected.”

(Krafft Ehricke proposed development of “satelloids” to operate in precisely this lower region of Earth’s atmosphere. Though they wouldn’t last long due to the thickness of the atmosphere, they would produce unique data.)