The hunt for the forces shaping Martian atmospheric evolution

Project Description

Mars was once a watery world, but today it is a frozen desert. Understanding its atmospheric evolution is critical and it reveals how a habitable planet loses its life-sustaining air and provides vital insights into the origins of life on Earth. This summer, you will investigate ionospheric anomalies—plasma "bubbles" that drive atmospheric loss into space. Using the spacecraft data and modelings, you’ll link these events to solar triggers and the crustal magnetic fields to help us map the forces shaping the Red Planet.