Mars's southern interior found 200-400C hotter than the north (Nature/Caltech study)
A new Nature study led by Caltech's Alexander Berne used 16 years of spacecraft tracking data and a technique called tidal tomography to find Mars's southern interior is 200 to 400 degrees Celsius hotter than the north, and may be partially molten.
A Nature study led by Caltech alumnus Alexander Berne reprocessed 16 years of radio tracking data from three Mars orbiters using tidal tomography, finding Mars's southern interior may be 200 to 400 degrees Celsius hotter than the north. The heat divide could help explain unusual magnetism in the south and why NASA InSight recorded faster seismic energy loss there. Independent scientists note the raw observations are solid but the temperature estimate itself relies on modeling assumptions, and one researcher points out Mars's largest volcanic province doesn't sit where the model would predict hotter mantle. Funded by NASA.