NASA scientists are giving Mars' Phobos less than 30 million years before it falls apart. A new computer model showed that the moon is already showing early signs of deteriorating because of the grooves, which were previously thought to be formed by an ejection of materials from the red planet.
Phobos, one of two moons of Mars aside from Deimos, is one of the least reflective bodies in the solar system. It is known for its heavily cratered surface, which features many grooves and streaks. Scientists have been studying the 30-meter deep grooves, which are believed to be created by the same impact that formed the Stickney crater.
Now, a new computer model contradicts previous beliefs and suggests that the grooves were formed by tidal forces or the push-and-pull between Mars and Phobos. The red planet is very close to the moon at 5,800 miles.
"We think that Phobos has already started to fail, and the first sign of this failure is the production of these grooves," Terry Hurford of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., said in a news release.
The distance between Phobos and Mars is narrowing with an estimate of three to six feet per century. Scientists believe that the moon will crash into Mars in 30 to 50 million years. However, Mars' gravitational pull might destroy its larger moon before it reaches it.
"We think the grooves are signs that this body is starting to break apart tidally and that these are the first evidence of the tidal deformations of Phobos," Hurford told Discovery News. "Eventually, Phobos will be ripped apart before it reaches Mars' surface."
The findings were presented in Nov. 10 at the annual Meeting of the Division of Planetary Sciences of the American Astronomical Society at National Harbor, Md.
