• Question: Why does earth have a atmosphere?

    Asked by Daisy to Jenn on 23 Mar 2016.
    • Photo: Jenn Wadsworth

      Jenn Wadsworth answered on 23 Mar 2016:

      Thanks for your question Daisy!
      Unlike Mars, the Earth has a magnetosphere which is generated by the liquid magma in the Earth’s mantel. This magnetosphere protects our atmosphere from being stripped away by the solar wind (charged particles from the sun). Mars is a lot less massive than earth; this caused its magma to cool a lot quicker and eventually solidify. This is why Mars has lost most of its magnetosphere and thereby its atmosphere too!
      Hope this answers your question 🙂

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