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Science 11 April 2003:
Vol. 300. no. 5617, pp. 260 - 261
DOI: 10.1126/science.1083626
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Perspectives

Also see the archival list of Science's Compass: Enhanced Perspectives

PLANETARY SCIENCE:
Enhanced: A Liquid Core for Mars?

Veronique Dehant

Early in their evolution, both Earth and Mars must have been sufficiently hot to be molten. Earth still has a liquid core, whereas the smaller Mars, having cooled faster, could be completely solid today. But is it? In her Perspective, Dehant highlights the report by Yoder et al., who have analyzed long-term changes in the orbit of Mars Global Surveyor around Mars. The data suggest that at least part of the martian core is liquid, with important consequences for the interior and evolution of our neighboring planet.

The author is at the Observatoire Royal de Belgique, Bruxelles, B-1180 Belgium. E-mail: veronique.dehant{at}oma.be

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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)