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About "Mars Atmosphere Stripping"

The planet Mars once had a much thicker atmosphere, and water on its surface, probably in lakes, rivers and small seas. However, lacking a significant magnetic field, the atmosphere has no protection from the Sun's ferocious solar wind — a steady stream of particles blustering away from the Sun at speeds of hundreds of km/s. As these particles brush up against the planet, friction steadily strips away its atmosphere. Nowadays, the atmospheric pressure on Mars is only around 1 percent of that on Earth.