Question

If we were to release a lot of extra carbon dioxide into the atmosphere of Mars, what would happen in the long term (i.e. over millions or billions of years)?

a) Mars' atmosphere would heat up, its ice caps would melt, and it would become Earth-like
b) Mars' atmosphere would suffer a runaway greenhouse effect, which would make it more like Venus
c) The extra carbon dioxide would be taken out of the atmosphere by Mars' carbon cycle
d) Mars' atmosphere would heat up, leading much of the extra carbon dioxide to escape to space
e) The extra carbon dioxide would just freeze onto the surface of Mars.

Answer 1

Releasing extra carbon dioxide into Mars' atmosphere would cause it to heat up, leading to the escape of much of the carbon dioxide to space over millions of years.

Step-by-step explanation:

The correct answer is d) Mars' atmosphere would heat up, leading much of the extra carbon dioxide to escape to space.

Releasing a lot of extra carbon dioxide into the atmosphere of Mars would cause the temperature on the planet to rise. This would heat up the atmosphere and cause an increase in atmospheric pressure. As the pressure increases, much of the extra carbon dioxide would be able to escape to space.

Over millions or billions of years, Mars' thin atmosphere and lack of magnetic field would lead to the gradual loss of the carbon dioxide, making it difficult for Mars to retain a significant amount of carbon dioxide in its atmosphere.