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Mars used to have a global magnetic field earlier in the planet’s history, but this was much earlier and much later than experts previously knew.
First of all, it is important to note the fact that a planet’s global magnetic field arises from what experts call a dynamo – this is a flux of molten metal within the planet’s core that can produce an electric current.
Here on Earth, the dynamo is what makes the compass needles point north. The dynamo on Mars, on the other hand, has been exciting for billions of years.
Now, it has been revealed that there are some new findings from USB researchers who have been working with colleagues in the United States and France that have been published in Science Advances.
Experts try to find time of prices and duration of dynamo on Mars
These findings are bringing experts closer to knowing the precise timing and duration of the dynamo on Mars.
“We discovered that the Martian dynamo operated 4.5 billion and 3.7 billion years ago. Dynamo timing is a big part of a planet’s evolution, and what we found is very different from what we’ve thought so far, “said Anna Mittelholz, first author of the study.
She went on and explained that “The dynamo tells us something about the thermal history of the planet, its evolution and how it got to where it is today, and it is unique for each of the terrestrial planets: Earth, Mars, Venus and Mercury.”
Phys.org notes that clues to the planet’s magnetic history lie in magnetized rocks above and below the surface of the red planet.
Rocks are like burners: They start out as lava, but as they cool and solidify in the presence of a magnetic field, the minerals within the rocks align with the global magnetic field.
When experts can date these rocks, they can estimate whether a dynamo was active at the time the rock was placed.
Blogging and publishing articles for over 9 years, Rada Mateescu is especially excited about technology, science, and health related topics. You will find his articles mainly in the Science section in Dual Dove.
