Massive Mars volcano erupted for 2 billion straight years
A massive volcano on Mars erupted continuously for 2 billion years, a new scientific study reports. "For 2 billion years, there's been sort of a steady plume of magma in one location on the surface of Mars," study co-author Mark Caffee of Purdue University confirms in a statement. Read more
Monster Martian volcano unlike anything on Earth, scientists say
An unusual meteorite found in Algeria in 2012 has given scientists information about volcanic activity on Mars, and it's not like anything we've ever seen on Earth. Analysis of the 6.9-ounce meteorite, labeled Northwest Africa (NWA) 7635 by an international team of scientists, has helped determine that sometime in its 4.5 billion-year history, Mars had a single volcano that erupted continuously for more than 2 billion years. Read more
Northwest Africa 7635 (NWA 7635) (Northwest Africa) Purchased: 2012 May Classification: Martian meteorite (Shergottite) History: Purchased near Dakhla, Morocco in May 2012 by Ali and Mohammed Hmani. Physical characteristics: A single black, partly fusion crusted stone (195.8 g), containing prominent lath-shaped, glassy maskelynite phenocrysts (some in clusters) in a fine-grained black matrix. Read more (PDF)