There may be no insects on Mars, but new images from an orbiting spacecraft have revealed large numbers of spiders that appear to be roaming across the dusty surface.
by: Science Alert
Free translation from English by lapatilla.com
Of course, they are not real, living spiders; Rather, they are dark, fluffy features of the Martian surface created entirely by non-biological processes. They are called “spiders” because that is what they look like, with a central dark spot surrounded by thin lines radiating outward.
They are formed as a result of seasonal changes on the Red Planet, and extreme cold followed by high temperatures in the spring.
Although Mars has seasons, thanks to an Earth-like axial tilt, those seasons are very different from what we experience on our home planet. Winter temperatures drop below -123°C (-190°F) and almost everything freezes.
This includes carbon dioxide, which forms surface deposits of a substance known as dry ice here on Earth. As the cold winter gives way to spring, temperatures warm; But while natural ice will melt in a warm atmosphere, dry ice does not. Instead, it escalates directly into gas.
You can read the full memo at Science Alert
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