by dougettinger » Tue Apr 26, 2011 7:28 pm
BMAONE23 wrote:It would seem to me to be unlikely that a cometary impactor consisting mostly of water ice and dry ice with a small iron core would have the potential to reach the core of Mars. If it were traveling fast enough, the friction heat from the initial impace would likely cause most of the volatile material to flash to a vaporous/gaseous state. For much the impactor to remain intact upon impact and reach the core, it would need to be quite large and dense (
like roughly the size of Hyperion ). If it did reach the core the heat there would cause the remaining water ice and CO2 ice to instantly vaporize and explosively fracture the planet, much like a hand wrapped closed around a firecraacker when it explodes will remove fingers. I don't think it likely that an impactor would have reached the planet's core.
Hello to BMAONE23 and other explosive/celestial collision experts:
Let's assume a body the size of Ceres but with much more frozen ices like a comet instead of a typical asteroid struck Mars where the Hellas impact basin is located. Pieces of this impactor would break off like a body being heated up by the friction of the planet's atmosphere. However, in the very young solar system of about 3.9 billions years ago, the atmosphere around Mars was still developing due to differentiation or still non-existent. Also, the resulting tidal forces of such a small planet like Mars would not likely break it into pieces comparable to our experience with the comet that struck Jupiter. Hence, the impactor is almost whole as it strikes the thin, halfway friable, but still flexible forming crust. The impactor easily penetrates the crust and the liquid mantle underneath.
In fact, the momentum of the impactor easily causes much movement through the liquid mantle toward the hotter and more pressurized core of the planet. Because of the size of the planet Mars, the core is probably are liquid wthout any solid portion. The anology is similar to punching a hole into a raw egg with a pointed pencil; this anology is in contrast to punching a hole into a boiled egg. I am assuming the very young planet has not cooled sufficiently to create any solid mantle. And the impactor is small enough that it has already become very dense, frozen, and hard due to its orbiting the cooler regions of the solar system near Mars. This combination of hardnesses of the impactor and the planet almost guarantees the restitution coefficient is very close to zero meaning that a very small percentage of its material is ejected in the collision.
It was proposed by BMAONE23 that the highly volatile materials would quickly expand and blow apart the planet like a firecracker held in someone's hand would blow apart their hand. The difference is a thick silicate soup is encasing and at considerable depth pressurizing the volatiles so that its expansion into a gas is controlled. The denseness and hardness of the impactor also helps to slow the phase change and control expansion. Then the globules of volatile gases; more than likely CO2, H2O, mixed with particles of iron and and sulfur under pressure may resemble a lava lamp. With the aid of gravity, the globules' interface surface friction with the silicates of the mantle, and convection the volatiles rise slowly to the surface of the planet and are trapped under the thin crust away from the original penetration. The pressure of the volatiles underneath the crust creates a bulge. The release of gases is finally accomplished by volcanoes over a period of time. Then some the raised crust collapses after the evacuation of the gases; this collapse creates the huge Valles Marineris.
I am only employing inductive reasoning at this point having knowledge of the conditions at the beginning and at the end. Laboratory experiments could possibly test the conditions that I am proposing. These thoughts are not mere musings; this reasoning is trying to connect the dots with aid of the various academic disciplines. You are welcomed and encouraged to dismantle any of these thoughts.
[quote="BMAONE23"]It would seem to me to be unlikely that a cometary impactor consisting mostly of water ice and dry ice with a small iron core would have the potential to reach the core of Mars. If it were traveling fast enough, the friction heat from the initial impace would likely cause most of the volatile material to flash to a vaporous/gaseous state. For much the impactor to remain intact upon impact and reach the core, it would need to be quite large and dense ( [url=http://nineplanets.org/hyperion.html]like roughly the size of Hyperion[/url] ). If it did reach the core the heat there would cause the remaining water ice and CO2 ice to instantly vaporize and explosively fracture the planet, much like a hand wrapped closed around a firecraacker when it explodes will remove fingers. I don't think it likely that an impactor would have reached the planet's core.[/quote]
Hello to BMAONE23 and other explosive/celestial collision experts:
Let's assume a body the size of Ceres but with much more frozen ices like a comet instead of a typical asteroid struck Mars where the Hellas impact basin is located. Pieces of this impactor would break off like a body being heated up by the friction of the planet's atmosphere. However, in the very young solar system of about 3.9 billions years ago, the atmosphere around Mars was still developing due to differentiation or still non-existent. Also, the resulting tidal forces of such a small planet like Mars would not likely break it into pieces comparable to our experience with the comet that struck Jupiter. Hence, the impactor is almost whole as it strikes the thin, halfway friable, but still flexible forming crust. The impactor easily penetrates the crust and the liquid mantle underneath.
In fact, the momentum of the impactor easily causes much movement through the liquid mantle toward the hotter and more pressurized core of the planet. Because of the size of the planet Mars, the core is probably are liquid wthout any solid portion. The anology is similar to punching a hole into a raw egg with a pointed pencil; this anology is in contrast to punching a hole into a boiled egg. I am assuming the very young planet has not cooled sufficiently to create any solid mantle. And the impactor is small enough that it has already become very dense, frozen, and hard due to its orbiting the cooler regions of the solar system near Mars. This combination of hardnesses of the impactor and the planet almost guarantees the restitution coefficient is very close to zero meaning that a very small percentage of its material is ejected in the collision.
It was proposed by BMAONE23 that the highly volatile materials would quickly expand and blow apart the planet like a firecracker held in someone's hand would blow apart their hand. The difference is a thick silicate soup is encasing and at considerable depth pressurizing the volatiles so that its expansion into a gas is controlled. The denseness and hardness of the impactor also helps to slow the phase change and control expansion. Then the globules of volatile gases; more than likely CO2, H2O, mixed with particles of iron and and sulfur under pressure may resemble a lava lamp. With the aid of gravity, the globules' interface surface friction with the silicates of the mantle, and convection the volatiles rise slowly to the surface of the planet and are trapped under the thin crust away from the original penetration. The pressure of the volatiles underneath the crust creates a bulge. The release of gases is finally accomplished by volcanoes over a period of time. Then some the raised crust collapses after the evacuation of the gases; this collapse creates the huge Valles Marineris.
I am only employing inductive reasoning at this point having knowledge of the conditions at the beginning and at the end. Laboratory experiments could possibly test the conditions that I am proposing. These thoughts are not mere musings; this reasoning is trying to connect the dots with aid of the various academic disciplines. You are welcomed and encouraged to dismantle any of these thoughts.