[X] My Assistant

[Juramike]

Recent articles coming out in Nature, reported in space.com:

"Huge Impact Created Mars Split Personality"

So, technically (and theoretically), all three operating landers are currently sitting in impact basins.

Spirit - Gusev
Oppy - Victoria
Phoenix - North Polar (putative) impact basin

-Mike

[tasp]

Just musing here;

With such a big impactor (~Pluto sized!!) and therefore a significant % of the mass of the then Mars, and the crater ~ centered on Martian north pole area, could we extrapolate a plausible impact speed, do the math, and tease out a 'more probable than not ' pre-impact orbit about the sun for Mars ?

Might be a unique opportunity to have a little better idea of the primordial Mars solar orbit, and see if there is anything interesting about it.

(I realize this is not a high precision exercise, but such a gross wallop to Mars might be able to probe something interesting from the solar system's early days)

[stevesliva]

With such a big impactor (~Pluto sized!!) and therefore a significant % of the mass of the then Mars, and the crater ~ centered on Martian north pole area, could we extrapolate a plausible impact speed, do the math, and tease out a 'more probable than not ' pre-impact orbit about the sun for Mars ?

There is a recent hypothesis (or at least new evidence) that the northern hemisphere wasn't always northern:
http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.php?o...le&sid=2364

[tasp]

There is a recent hypothesis (or at least new evidence) that the northern hemisphere wasn't always northern:
http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.php?o...le&sid=2364

LOL!

That darn reality always messing up what I want to do. The pre impact Mars orbit might be pretty interesting, but I concur now, it is profoundly unlikely we will ever know.

Piffle.