stmx3 wrote in message ...
Waitaminute...the pressure of the Martian atmosphere is only about 1%
that of Earth's at sea level, right?

Wouldn't any surface water just boil away?

Doug


Not necessarily...especially if the water is cold. At 70 deg F, you can
lower pressure slowly down to about 10 Torr before vigorous boiling
occurs. If you keep lowering below 4.5 Torr, suddenly you'll get a
rapid phase transition to ice because you're at the Triple Point of
water. So, if water is colder, you should be able to lower pressure
even further before you get boiling.

How much is 10 Torr in terms inches of mercury?

Doug