Summary

Praise for the previous edition:
"...offer[s] detail-rich discussions...consider for assignment use..."—School Library Journal

Mars exploration has never been more active, and our understanding of the planet is advancing rapidly. New discoveries reveal gullies carved by recent groundwater flow, thick ice deposits protected by rocks and soil even at the equator, and new evidence for lakes and seas in Mars' past. The Martian surface has some of the oldest planetary crust in the solar system, containing clues to conditions in early planets that cannot be obtained elsewhere.

Beginning with a discussion of Mars as a planet in orbit, Mars, Revised Edition covers fundamental facts about this planet, including its mass and size, its seasons and surface effects on the planet, and theories on how the severity of its seasons have changed over time. Featuring up-to-date information and new research, this new, full-color book explores what is known and inferred about the composition and structure of this planet's interior—including theories of planetary formation—as well as discussions of weather, surface conditions, and surface features. The recovery of the Mars program and its new structure are also described in this insightful resource.

Chapters include:

• Mars: Fast Facts about a Planet in Orbit
• Planetary Evolution and the Martian Interior
• The Visible Planet
• Life on Mars?
• Moons
• Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter: A Study in Mission Planning and Science Achievements
• Missions
• Conclusions: The Known and the Unknown.

Specifications

Full-color photographs and line illustrations. Tables and charts. Index. Appendixes. Glossary. Further print and Web resources.

About the Author(s)

Linda T. Elkins-Tanton, Ph.D., has a doctorate in geology and geophysics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), held a research position at Brown University, and is now on the faculty at MIT. She is an expert on early planetary evolution, volcanic processes, and the connections between meteorite impacts, flood basalts, and global extinction events. She has been published in many journals, including Science; Nature Geoscience; Geology, Earth, and Planetary Science Letters; Geophysical Research Letters; and the Journal of Geophysical Research.