Olympus Mons Martian surface atmospheric pressure is less than one percent of Earth's, the much lower gravity of Mars increases the atmosphere's scale height; in other words, Mars's atmosphere is expansive and does not drop off in density with height as sharply as Earth's. The composition of Olympus Mons is approximately 44% silicates, 17.5% iron oxides (which give the planet its red coloration) 7% aluminum, 6% magnesium, 6% calcium, and particularly high proportions of sulfur oxide with 7%. These results point to the surface being largely composed of basalts and other mafic rocks, which would have erupted as low viscosity lava flows
Our Plundered Planet Our Plundered Planet Our Plundered Planet is a book published in 1948 that was written by Fairfield Osborn about environmental destruction by humankind. With a focus on soil, the book is a critique of humankind's poor stewardship of Earth. It typifies the earliest apocalyptic environmental literature, in which human beings are seen as destroyers of the natural world. "Our Plundered Planet", along with William Vogt’s "Road to Survival", also published in 1948, launched a Malthusian revival in the post War era, and would inspire Paul R. Ehrlich, author of "The Population Bomb" among many others. In writing this book, Osborn