Mars Snowflakes Are as Tiny as Red Blood Cells

Mars Snowflakes Are as Tiny as Red Blood Cells

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Snowflakes on Mars are smaller than their Earth counterparts, having roughly the same diameter as a human red blood cell, a new study reports. Researchers analyzed observations made by two Mars-orbiting spacecraft to calculate the size of snowflakes on the Red Planet, which are composed of carbon dioxide rather than water.

Snowflakes require a kernel of some sort around which to form — a speck of dust, for example. So knowing the size of Martian snowflakes may help researchers better understand the properties and behavior of dust in the Red Planet’s atmosphere, the researchers said. The study will be published in an upcoming issue of The Journal of Geophysical Research.