[geoschmo]

[quote]Originally posted by dogscoff:

So my main question remains: Would nitrogen be available on Mars? If it's not iin the air, is it likely to be found in rocks, soil etc?

Going strictly from my fractured memory, isn't Nitrogen supposed to be the second most abundant element in the universe after Hydrogen? I may be wrong about that, but if I am right then I think we ought to be able to find some significant quantaties in some form on Mars.

Geoschmo

EDIT: Nope, guess I was wrong. Looks like Nitrogen is fifth behind Hydrogen, Helium, Oxygen and Neon. Oh well. Guess I should look that stuff up before posting.

I did find an interesting and relevant link.
(click on the quote to go to the source)

Oddly enough, nitrogen is the limiting gas species for plant life on Mars. There is more than enough CO2 for photosynthesis, nearly enough oxygen for respiration and the atmospheric pressure is close to the lower limit. In fact in some regions, the atmospheric pressure reaches 9 or 10 millibars and some hardy terrestrial plants could be found to survive such conditions. However, there is too little N2 for nitrogen fixation for some plants by a factor of 5. Nitrogen must also be found in the soil for plants to thrive. Currently, the N2 levels in the Martian soil are unknown. If these are later found to be low, Robert Zubrin [Zubrin & Wagner, 1996] suggests we may be able to make fertilizer out of the atmosphere.

[ July 16, 2003, 16:41: Message edited by: geoschmo ]