Why are the Polar Ice cap on Mars are melting the same time as the ones on earth?

Question

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/02/070228-mars-warming.html

Answer 1

The short explanation is that they're not.  Direct from NASA, the institute which made the observations:

Like Earth, Mars has seasons that cause its polar caps to wax and wane. "It's late spring at the south pole of Mars," says planetary scientist Dave Smith of the Goddard Space Flight Center. "The polar cap is receding because the springtime sun is shining on it."

"Remember, though," adds Smith, "there are two polar caps on Mars--north and south. While the south polar cap is vaporizing the north polar cap is growing. It's a balancing act.

Answer 2

Even though Mars has barely an atmosphere at all, it has alot of greenhouse gases which maybe cause the ice caps to melt... this is what I found at NASA.com:

Atmosphere

The atmosphere of Mars contains much less oxygen (O2) than that of Earth. The O2 content of the Martian atmosphere is only 0.13 percent, compared with 21 percent in Earth's atmosphere. Carbon dioxide makes up 95.3 percent of the gas in the atmosphere of Mars. Other gases include nitrogen (N2), 2.7 percent; argon (Ar), 1.6 percent; carbon monoxide (CO), 0.07 percent; and water vapor (H2O), 0.03 percent.

Greenhouse gasses:

Any gas that absorbs infra-red radiation in the atmosphere. Greenhouse gases include water vapor, carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), halogenated fluorocarbons (HCFCs) , ozone (O3), perfluorinated carbons (PFCs), and hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs).

Answer 3

Thats not fair, they got Co2 ice on their caps and we only have H2o ice on ours, darn that GWB.

Answer 4

Because of giant dust storms unique to Mars.  From NASA:

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/researc...

Answer 5

Because of facts like these, people have changed the call of alarm. "Global warming" is no longer a major threat, but "Global climate change" is!

Answer 6

Two questions for you:

1. What is the likely CAUSE of changes that are occurring on Mars?

2. What is happening to the polar ice on Saturn, or Uranus?

Oh, and a third:

3. Did you even read the article that you linked?  Quote, “Abdussamatov's work, however, has not been well received by other climate scientists.  ÃƒÂ¢Ã‚€Â˜His views are completely at odds with the mainstream scientific opinion,’ said Colin Wilson, a planetary physicist at England's Oxford University.” End quote.

Answer 7

Clever. It is a confusing question. I trust, not intentionally.

The Mars Ice Cap is of Carbon Dioxide, what we call "dry ice", it is not an "Ice Cap" like we have on earth, made of water, you know, the stuff we drink.

Mars is so much further away from the sun that it is much colder.

That the melting rate of solid CO2 in Mars happens at the same, or a different, time as the melting of water ice H2O on earth has no cause-and-effect relationship.

I would bet if there is CO2 in Pluto, formerly called "planet", that it would be solid ice, like it is found in one of the planets in Jupiter. What does that prove? Nothing, absolutely nothing.

Remember to always ask "What is the Cause/Effect Relationship?" This will help you understand science, won't help you understand people, but science.