Craters on Mars Surface
14.06.2024
Craters on Mars Surface
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For Prelims: About the craters on the Mars, Key facts about the Mars |
Why in the news?
Recently, the scientists of the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) discovered the three craters on Mars.
Key Points
- The Martian surface contains thousands of impact craters because, unlike Earth, Mars has a stable crust, low erosion rate, and no active sources of lava.
- They provide insights into the age and geology of a planet’s surface.
Recent Discovery
- Scientists of the Physical Research Laboratory, located in Ahmedabad, have discovered the Tharsis Volcanic Region on Mars, where these three craters are located, is characterized by extensive lava flows.
These are:
○Lal Crater: It was named after Prof. Devendra Lal, a renowned Indian geophysicist and former director of PRL from 1972-1983.
○Mursan Crater: It was named after a town in Uttar Pradesh, India, that was superimposed on the eastern side of the rim of the Lal crater.
○Hilsa Crater: It was named after a town in Bihar, superimposed on the western side of the rim of the Lal crater.
- The above three names of the craters that have been approved by the Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature of the International Astronomical Union (IAU).
Key facts about the Mars
- It is the fourth planet from the Sun and is a cold desert world. It is nearly half the size of Earth.
- It is sometimes called the Red Planet, because of rusty iron in the ground.
- It has lower gravity (about one-third that of Earth) but its atmosphere is just 1% as thick, making it much harder to generate lift.
- It is also a dynamic planet with seasons, polar ice caps, canyons, extinct volcanoes, and evidence that it was even more active in the past.
- It has a very thin atmosphere made of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and argon.
- There are signs of ancient floods on Mars, but now water mostly exists in icy dirt and thin clouds.
Source: The Hindu
Ques :- The terms Lal, Mursan, Hilsa were recently seen in the news for which one of the following reasons?
(a) It is a tribal craft which recently received a Geographical Indication (GI) tag.
(b) It is a newly discovered craters on Mars.
(c) It is a newly discovered asteroids on Moon
(d) It is a megalithic burial structure found from the Iron Age.
Answer B