In a new paper published in the journal Nature Astronomy, Bruce Jakosky of the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado, Boulder, and Christopher Edwards from the department of physics and astronomy at Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, reveal how Mars might never regain the wet and warm character of its early days — even with human intervention. However, vaporizing the ice caps would only contribute enough CO2 to double the Martian pressure to 1.2 percent of Earth's, according to the new analysis.". As a result, terraforming Mars is not possible using present-day technology," Jakosky told Phys.org. Moreover, as it heats, more CO 2 should enter the atmosphere from the frozen reserves on the poles, enhancing the greenhou… ", NASA Study Throws Cold Water on Idea of Terraforming Mars. In a talk at the NASA Planetary Science Vision 2050 Workshop at the agency’s headquarters, Green presented simulations, models, and early thinking about how a Martian magnetic field might be re-constituted and the how the climate on Mars could then become more friendly for human exploration and perhaps communities. To terraforming hopefuls, this lack of CO2 is a complete and total bummer. While dreams of skipping through Martian fields might be dashed for now, it's likely that the red planet will still one day host human colonists in our mission to explore the solar system. Michael d’Estries has been writing about science, culture, space and sustainability since 2005. It's a lot easier to keep this one pleasant and with a clement climate than it is to change the Mars environment. "With Mars being further away from the Sun, researchers estimate a CO2 pressure similar to Earth's total atmospheric pressure is needed to raise temperatures enough to allow for stable liquid water. According to estimates, the atmosphere that presently remains will entirely disappear over the next 2 billion years. The team concludes that simply too much of Mars' atmosphere has been stripped away by solar wind and radiation. NASA Study Throws Cold Water on Idea of Terraforming Mars. The most accessible source is CO2 in the polar ice caps; it could be vaporized by spreading dust on it to absorb more solar radiation or by using explosives. NASA plans to put boots on Mars in the relatively near future, whether or not terraforming is a viable option. Mars as it may have appeared some 4 billion years ago. Unfortunately, a new study by the MAVEN science team finds that processing all sources available on Mars would only increase the pressure to about 7% … Because its atmosphere consists mainly of CO 2, a known greenhouse gas, once Mars begins to heat, the CO 2 may help to keep thermal energy near the surface. The Martian polar caps, minerals, and soil could all provide sources of carbon dioxide and water to thicken the atmosphere. Taken together, the results indicate that terraforming Mars cannot be done with currently available technology. Mars's core went from active to dormant, its magnetic field weakened, and solar winds and/or impacts from comets or asteroids slowly stripped the planet of its atmosphere. The water that didn't evaporate as the surface cooled and dried up became locked up in ice at the poles. This research was supported in part by NASA through the MAVEN and Mars Odyssey THEMIS (Thermal Emission Imaging System) projects.