Technical Tiwari

For years, scientists have puzzled over the mysterious gullies etched into the slopes of Mars' sand dunes. A new experiment has now revealed an explosive answer — carbon dioxide (CO₂) ice may have carved these features on its own. Earth scientist Dr. Lonneke Roelofs of Utrecht University made a finding that blocks of frozen CO₂. This can move down Martian slopes and explode rows of sand outward to dig deep holes. Roelofs specified that it was like seeing the sandworms in Dune. Her findings were published in Geophysical Research Letters recently. Exploding CO₂ Ice Blocks Shape Mars' Dunes and Carve Its Mysterious Gullies According to the research team, the process begins during the Martian winter when CO₂ frost builds up over dunes as temperatures drop to minus 120 degrees Celsius. As spring sunlight returns, the ice warms rapidly and begins to sublimate — turning straight from solid to gas. The trapped gas builds immense pressure beneath the ice, making it “explode” and push sa...