How Mars Lost Its Water to Space
火星如何失去水分並散失至太空
Mars was once a warm, wet world.
火星曾經是一個溫暖、潮濕的世界。
Between 3.7 and 4 billion years ago, rivers and lakes covered the surface, protected by a strong magnetic field.
在37億到40億年前，河流和湖泊覆蓋了其表面，並受到強大磁場的保護。
Without protection, the solar wind began stripping away the atmosphere.
在失去保護後，太陽風開始剝離大氣層。
Today, we know water escapes through processes like photodissociation, where sunlight breaks water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen.
今天，我們知道水透過諸如光解作用等過程逃逸，即太陽光將水分子分解為氫和氧。
Dust storms also play a role, lifting water vapor high into the atmosphere where it is more easily lost.
沙塵暴也扮演了一定角色，將水蒸氣帶到大氣高層，使其更容易散失。
While much water has vanished, some remains trapped in polar ice caps, underground permafrost, and rocks.
儘管大部分水已經消失，但仍有一些殘留在極地冰帽、地下永凍層和岩石中。
Missions like MAVEN help scientists track this history by studying isotope ratios, which act as a 'fingerprint' of lost water.
像MAVEN這樣的任務藉由研究同位素比例，幫助科學家追蹤這段歷史，這些比例如同遺失水的「指紋」。
Understanding Mars helps us learn how planets evolve and what makes a world capable of supporting life.
了解火星有助於我們學習行星如何演化，以及什麼因素使得一個世界具備支持生命的能力。
