Planet Four Talk

remnants of fans?

  • HMB6EQUJ5 by HMB6EQUJ5

    would the faint blue area be remnants of fans? i can't make out a tell tale blow hole

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  • wassock by wassock moderator

    Think it is fan related, but could be just the start of one. A clear 'blow hole' would be a find if you see one

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  • mschwamb by mschwamb scientist, translator in response to HMB6EQUJ5's comment.

    It could be. There is some though that fan particles sink into the ice especially out the outside edges and cause the ice to melt and recrystallize changing the color observed and the shape and width of the dark seasonal fan/blotch. The other thought is that it's new carbon dioxide frost. Likely both of these going on and different times and places on the South Pole.

    Cheers,

    ~Meg

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  • p.titchin by p.titchin in response to HMB6EQUJ5's comment.

    A close look shows 3 of these small faint blue fans in the image.~Pete

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  • wassock by wassock moderator

    I'd go 4 and a half Pete 😃

    Meg - do you means frost or snow? Frost - ice which forms direct from atmosphere in contact with a surface. Snow - ice which forms in the atmosphere and than falls to ground.

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  • mschwamb by mschwamb scientist, translator in response to wassock's comment.

    frost - same thing if you took one of those condensed air canisters to clean computer insides and press it up to a mirror while discharging - you'd form a layer of frost on it. That's how its been described to me. The condensed CO2 is coming from the vent.

    ~Meg

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  • wassock by wassock moderator in response to mschwamb's comment.

    Meg - I make that snow - its the decompression that forms the ice whilst still airborne, It's already solid when it hits the mirror.

    I think it's important that we get this bit of terminology right.. Frost and snow have different ways of forming and may have different optical properties if there are differences in particle size and shape. Frost can also form preferentially on different surfaces, whilst snow will just land where it drops.

    Most importantly we need to make it clear if we are talking about ice which originates in the vent, and falls to ground as snow, or if it's unconnected to the vent and forms on the ground just because it's cold, like frost on your lawn.

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  • wassock by wassock moderator

    NB the post you put up by Michaelaye elsewhere with the discussion on what causes Blue - uses the term frost for solid CO2 formed whilst airborne and falling to ground - SNOW!

    While we've got this one open, he also talks about the possibility of surface fans being 'blown away' by subsequent winds. Do you have any data on how "sticky" the surface of the CO2 slab would be?

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