The article claims that water is a scarce resource on Mars, but I though that it was relativly abundant
(relative to the moon, mercury, etc.)? Also, an early autonomous colony won't use much water, in the grand scheme of things, and most water will be recycled. Other then that, martian water has a higher amount of deutarium, which is unsuitable for life. How will the excess deutarium be filtered out. [[User:T.Neo|T.Neo]] 07:13, 19 June 2008 (UTC)
:Hi T.Neo, compared to the moon, mercury, etc. water is abundant indeed. I think the article only compares with Earth, and only the liquid phase. Nonetheless, you should add a comparission with other cosmic bodies.
:I did not know about the high deuterium portion. You may add a paragraph "Open issues" to pose the problem of filtering. I introduced such paragraphs in many other articles. Hopefully, somebody else can answer these questions, or somebody can do the research to find the answers. -- [[User:Rfc|Rfc]] 07:07, 20 June 2008 (UTC)

I dont know how deutarium would be filtered out. I dont really know much about filtering isotopes, but deutarium-containing water is heavier then ordinary water (hence the name "heavy water"), I suppose it could be seperated with a centrifuge. (Maybe, I dunno.)[[User:T.Neo|T.Neo]] 12:14, 23 June 2008 (UTC)
:I inserted the "Open issues" section. -- [[User:Rfc|Rfc]] 12:47, 24 June 2008 (UTC)

==vandalism==
this page should be protected, there is constant vandalism. [[User:Nawi|Nawi]] 19:37, 1 July 2008 (UTC)

Water

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Nawi:

Water

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Nawi: Undo revision 3451 by 82.194.62.235 (Talk) constant vandalism..

Water

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Nawi: damn vandalism..

Water

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Nawi:

Water

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Nawi: Undo revision 3446 by 121.9.205.131 (Talk)

'''Water''' is a chemical compound consisting of a single [[oxygen]] atom bonded to two [[hydrogen]] atoms (''chemical symbols:'' H2O). Clean water is essential to almost all known forms of life, and its unique properties make it invaluable for most industrial processes. Although water in the liquid phase is abundant on Earth, its scarcity on Mars make it into a critical resource to be treasured.

==Evidence for water on Mars==

Starting in 2004, the evidence of the presence of water on Mars has been mounting. The [[Opportunity]] rover discovered geological markers - stratification and cross-bedding - near its landing site which pointed to significant flows of water at some time in Mars' history. Around the same time the [[Mars Express]] orbiter detected the spectral evidence of water present in the polar regions. In 2005, Mars Express confirmed this by locating an area of solid water ice near the north pole. The [[Phoenix]] lander confirmed the existence of water ice in Mars.

===Measuring the abundance of water ice===
[[Image:MARSIS.jpg|thumb|200px|right|A MARSIS map of Mars' south pole ice deposits.]]
On March 15, 2007, [[Mars Express]]' mission control released more news of extensive frozen water discovered at the Martian [[south pole]]. These new and highly accurate measurements predict that if the ice were to be melted, the whole planet would be covered in a liquid layer 11 meters deep. Although it has been known for many years that the poles have an abundance of ice, it has never been measured to this degree of accuracy. The data comes from the Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionospheric Sounding (MARSIS) currently mapping the north pole to gain a better understanding of how much frozen water may be contained there. MARSIS can probe over 2 miles below the Martian surface and has found extensive layered deposits of ice.

Mars shows evidence of extensive liquid water flowing on its surface in the past and it is the focus of many Mars missions to find out how this water has leaked away over the millennia. Martian polar ice may be the culprit, suggesting Mars may once have had a warmer climate, slowly cooling as the atmosphere became a more inefficient insulator for the meager heating from the distant Sun.

===Evidence for liquid water?===

Future manned exploration on Mars will require a source of water whether it is in the form of ice or sub-surface [[aquifers]]. The [[Mars Express]] orbiter has uncovered some confusing measurements suggesting there may be liquid water accompanying all that ice. MARSIS bounced back data suggesting at least 90% of the layered deposits under the polar cap are indeed supplies of ice, but a thin layer resembling liquid water is also evident. It is hard to understand the existence of liquid water at the extremely low temperatures predicted. Perhaps high pressures or small geological processes may explain these observations. Another orbiter, NASA's Mars Global Surveyor, has also returned some exciting new evidence for the existence of new flows of liquid water on the Martian surface away from the frozen poles. {{science question|What pressures are required to keep water in a liquid phase at temperatures as low as that on the surface of Mars? - [[User:Ioneill|Ioneill]]}}

The [[Mars Global Surveyor]] arrived at the Red Planet on September 11, 1997 and returned a decade of data on the evolution of the planet before it was lost in November 2006 through energy loss. It was Mars' longest operational artificial satellite. The Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) onboard revealed new deposits possibly carried as sediment by flowing water in two locations in the past 7 years (press release dated December 6, 2006)<ref>[http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/mgs/newsroom/20061206a.html NASA Press Release: ''NASA Images Suggest Water Still Flows in Brief Spurts on Mars'']</ref>. In images taken in August 1999 and September 2006 of the same location ([[Centauri Montes]] Region), a bright deposit measuring several hundred meters long is evident in the 2006 image but not in the 1999 image. A similar feature was observed at a different location from 2001 to 2005 at [[Terra Sirenum]]. It is worth noting that both locations are in equatorial regions, not usually associated with ice or liquid water. This suggests liquid water remains a characteristic of the Mars landscape, if only sporadically. These discoveries have increased the enthusiasm for the search for [[microbes|microbial life]], but the implications for manned exploration are huge. If there are pockets of liquid water just below the surface, Mars may yet be able to provide our future pioneers with natural springs more familiar on Earth.
[[Image:Water_deposit.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Evidence from the [[Mars Global Surveyor]] MOC instrument that spurts of liquid water may sporadically flow on the Martian surface]]
However, surface water on Mars is short-lived. The Martian atmosphere is very thin (a pressure of 7 millibars, <1% that of Earth's thick atmosphere) and cold (an average global temperature of -55°C or -67F), these two factors deny any long-term existence of liquid water. Surface liquid water will quickly freeze and [[sublimation|sublime]] into the atmosphere, bypassing the [[triple point|liquid phase]]. The phase transition for H2O on the surface of Mars occurs below the "[[triple point]]" on the phase diagram so the recent observations of sediment on the surface will have been deposited very quickly by short lived "spurts" of water. Just how short-lived these spurts of water are it is unknown, but a significant volume must have created a formidable river to carry sediment several hundred meters.

Although there may be other explanations for these long "channels" of sediment, such as rock slides or wind-blown [[sand]] features, the appearance of the deposits seem very water-like. Michael Malin of Malin Space Science Systems, a mission scientist for the MOC says, "''The shapes of these deposits are what you would expect to see if the material were carried by flowing water... they have finger-like branches at the downhill end and easily diverted around small obstacles''".<ref>[http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/mgs/newsroom/20061206a.html NASA Press Release: ''NASA Images Suggest Water Still Flows in Brief Spurts on Mars'']</ref>

===Mineral alterations by ancient water flows===

Further support for the existence of flowing water comes from the first observations made by NASA's [[Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter]] (launched in 2005) where the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera spotted small fractures and cracks in the Martian canyon, [[Candor Chasma]]. The cracks analyzed show signs of mineral alteration in the rock exposed - a sign that liquid water once flowed through these sub-surface pipes.

:"''What caught my eye was the bleaching or lack of dark material along the fracture. That is a sign of mineral alteration by fluids that moved through those joints. It reminded me of something I had seen during field studies in Utah, that is light-tone zones, or 'haloes,' on either side of cracks through darker sandstone''" - Dr. Chris Okubo, a geologist at the University of Arizona, Tucson.

Although this is a sign that the liquid water has since disappeared from these cracks and fractures in the canyon rock, it is interesting to find evidence for ancient water in abundance.

===Other discoveries===
*The 1996 [[Mars Pathfinder]] mission discovered plentiful evidence that its landing site, [[Ares Vallis]], was once the bottom of a huge valley system eroded by ancient water.

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==Usage==

===Drinking water===
The [[human]] metabolism requires regularly the intake of fresh water. Since water is rare on Mars the [[recycling]] of all excretion is a must. There are two ways: Wastewater can be [[technical wastewater treatment|treated with technical means]], which is partially done on the [[ISS]] already. Alternatively, the water can be kept in a [[water cycle|natural cycle]], using the [[greenhouse]]s.

===Industrial processes===

Many industrial processes considered for a Mars settlement, in particular the production of [[methanol]] and [[methane]], require hydrogen gas. This can be obtained by [[electrolysis]], with oxygen gas as a byproduct.

Most other processes require the use of significant quantities of water as a [[solvent]] for reagents such as [[acid]]s or [[ammonia]].

==Open issues==
*What is known about the isotope ratio of Martian water?
*Is the higher deuterium portion a health risk?
*How will the excess deuterium be filtered out?

==External Links==

*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water Wikipedia page on water]
*[http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/express/mission/sc_science_marsis02.html Searching for water with the Mars Express MARSIS instrument.]

===References===
<references/>

[[category:Climate]]
[[category:Chemistry]]

2008-06-29T20:07:31Z

Nawi:

Name: Nawi

Location: Finland

Interests: Space exploration, transhumanism and the future

Contact: nawitus at gmail dot com

Useful links:

[[http://www.overcomingbias.com Overcoming Bias]]

[[http://www.transhumanism.org/index.php/WTA/index/ World Transhumanist Association]]

[[http://singinst.org The Singularity Institute For AI]]

[[http://www.piracyfaq.com Piracy faq]]

User:Nawi

2008-06-29T20:05:53Z

Nawi:

User:Nawi

2008-06-29T20:05:24Z

Nawi:

Name: Nawi

Location: Finland

Interests: Space exploration, transhumanism and the future

Contact: nawitus at gmail dot com

Useful links:
[[http://www.overcomingbias.com Overcoming Bias]]

[[http://www.transhumanism.org/index.php/WTA/index/ World Transhumanist Association]]

[[http://singinst.org The Singularity Institute For AI Research]]

User:Nawi

2008-06-29T20:04:54Z

Nawi:

Name: Nawi

Location: Finland

Interests: Space exploration, transhumanism and the future

Contact: nawitus at gmail dot com

Useful links:
[[http://www.overcomingbias.com Overcoming Bias]]
[[http://www.transhumanism.org/index.php/WTA/index/ World Transhumanist Association]]
[[http://singinst.org The Singularity Institute For AI Research]]

User:Nawi

2008-06-29T19:36:59Z

Nawi: New page: Name: Nawi Location: Finland Interests: Space exploration, transhumanism and the future Contact: nawitus at gmail dot com Useful links: http://www.overcomingbias.com [[http://www.tran...

Name: Nawi
Location: Finland
Interests: Space exploration, transhumanism and the future
Contact: nawitus at gmail dot com

Useful links:
[[http://www.overcomingbias.com]]
[[http://www.transhumanism.org/index.php/WTA/index/]]

Internet

2008-06-29T15:16:03Z

Nawi:

The first permanent [[settlement]] on [[Mars]] will be of a size that does not necessarily require a distributed computer network. Nevertheless, there is the need for a mutual communication between people on Mars and people on [[Earth]]. The Martian settlement can, therefore, be connected to the terrestrial Internet, which in fact makes it an '''Interplanetary Internet'''.

The speed of any communication between Mars and Earth is limited to the [[speed of light]], which results in a minimum delay (when the planets are closest to each other) of about 8 minutes for '''one way'''. This delay increases to approximately 18 minutes when the planets are in [[conjunction]]. This causes another issue as the Sun will be blocking the Line Of Sight (LOS) between the planets, communication signals will need to be re-routed via an [[Deep Space Network|interplanetary network]],<ref>[http://deepspace.jpl.nasa.gov/dsn/ NASA's Deep Space Network]</ref> increasing the time taken for signals to travel between Earth and Mars. Without special buffering the result of a ''mouse click'' appears 16 minutes (minimum), or over 36 minutes (maximum), later on the screen. Time for HTML download will add to this lag. So, at worst, a complete terrestrial web page may take over 40 minutes to display on a Mars-based computer.

==Concept==
The first step can be a single computer and a radio transmitter brought from Earth to Mars. On Earth there is a corresponding radio transmitter, or network of global transmitters, and a buffered interface to Earth's Internet. Internet access may only be available during certain time frames (depending on Earth/Mars phase and availability of communication satellites).

An extension is possible to widen the time windows with additional transmitters on other continents and relay stations orbiting Earth and Mars.

The buffer on Earth side should have some additional functionality:
* Collect all files (e.g. pictures) that are related to a requested HTML page and send them together with the HTML page. This reduces the time from ''mouse click'' to complete screen display of up to 40 minutes.
* Reduce resolution of pictures if appropriate.
* Compress data stream.
* Add redundancy to the signal to allow data reconstruction for lost bits. The re-transmission of TCP data packets is awfully time consuming in this case and should be avoided.
* Another method is to construct a new method of HTML transmission (similar to the cut-down WAP service for cell phones and other mobile devices). Images and graphics may be stripped from websites leaving only HTML text.

==Solutions to the Internet communications "lag"==
===The first Mars base===
In the first instance (when the first colony is being constructed) it may not be possible to have a functioning "Internet" as we currently understand it. Colonists should, however, have email contact for personal and science-based contact with Earth.

===An established base===
In time, the technological capabilities of a Mars base will increase. Also, technological advances on Earth will have accelerated, so an established Mars colony may receive new technologies as it becomes available on Earth.

Assuming an established Mars base will consist of several buildings, or separate settlement sites spaced several kilometers apart, computer communications will be very important. The establishment of a basic "Mars Internet" would therefore be desirable to improve communications around the planet. A Mars Internet (or ''Marsnet'') could be routed via satellites in Mars orbit or lines may be laid across the Mars surface directly. Using technology developed on Earth, ''Marsnet'' would develop quickly, and depending on the number of colonists, the first Mars websites may be created rapidly.

However advanced a ''Marsnet'' becomes, communications with the terrestrial Internet will still be limited by the speed of light. There are two possible solutions to this problem:
# Find a method of transmitting data faster than the speed of light.
# Cache (store) as much of the terrestrial Internet as possible on Mars-based servers, regularly uploading new information depending on demand.

Limitations to these solutions:
# Currently, there is '''''no physical way''''' to travel faster than the speed of light.
# The current number of websites on the Internet total over 100 million (as of Feb. 2007).<ref>[http://www.boutell.com/newfaq/misc/sizeofweb.html How many websites are there? ''Boutell.com'']</ref> By the time a Mars colony is established, this number will have exponentially increased. How can such a huge number of web pages be cached on Mars-based servers? New technologies will need to be applied, as currently, this solution is not possible. If it were possible, only a very select few sites could be cached, and these would be "mission critical" sites such as [[NASA]]'s or [[ESA]]'s web pages.

==First use cases==
*Technology information from Earth to Mars
*Scientific results from Mars to Earth
*Personal E-Mails in both directions

==Martian Net==
Eventually the number of internet servers and web homepages located in Mars will increase, thus solving many of the problems with the use of Earth based homepages.

==Open Issues==
*What minimal transmitter is required for a radio link from Earth to Mars (surface to surface)?
*What data rate can be achieved by simple technology?
*What time windows exist with a single transmitter on both sides?

===References===
<references/>

[[Category: Concepts]]
[[Category: Hi-tech]]
[[Category: Communication]]