All About Space - UK (2020-02)

Climate change

Venusisalready

hellishwitha

chokinglythick

atmospherethat

consistsalmost

entirelyof

carbondioxide.

Thatwould

burnawayif

temperatures

rosefurther.

Thereis

evidenceof

pocketsof

watericeat

Mercury’spoles,

especiallyat

pointsthatdon’t

seesunlight,

butthesewould

soonevaporate.

TheRedPlanet

hasaleadyseen

climatechange:

a thin ing

atmosphere

meantliquid

watercould

nolongerbe

stabiliedonthe

surface.Under-

surfacewater

willeventually

dryout.

Climate change

throughout the

Solar System

Mercury

167°C/332°F

Ve nu s

464°C/867°F

Theeffectsof

climatechange

onEarthare

alreadywell-

documented.

Expectrising

sealevels,a loss

ofseaice,heat

wavesthatare

moreintense

andthealtering

oftheseasons.

Earth

15°C/59°F

Mars

-65°C/-85°F

0 °C

100 °C

-100°C

-200°C

-300°C

-400°C

200 °C

300 °C

400 °C

1000 °C

2000 °C

3000 °C

4000 °C

5000 °C

Phobos*

Phobos is less

likely to be

affected by

climate change

and more likely

to find it comes

to a sticky end

by smashing

into Mars.

Deimos*

The smaller

of Mars’ two

moons is slowly

drifting away. It

will eventually

escape the Red

Planet’s gravity

and find itself

on a journey

into space.

TheMoon’s

temperature

rosebyseveral

degreesafter

astronautspaid

ita visit– a

changetha

wouldn’thave

muchofan

effect.Too

muchheatwill

breakupthe

Moon’ssurace

material.

Moon

-20°C /- 4° F

s

re

ve

te

p

t

av

n

w

he

fa

Phobos*

-4°C/25°F

e

re

te

n

sp

t

c

ng

s

ce

ce

ve

uuuttt

Deimos*

-40°C/-40°F

4,700°C/8,500°F

End temperature –

where things turn extreme