Hi All

As gases are tested for greenhouse activity new ones for warming Mars keep appearing. A new study has identified C3F8 as a potential super-greenhouse gas for terraforming Mars. Mized with a couple of other super-greenhouse gases at 2 ppm (Earth pressure, 300 ppm on Mars) - that's just 0.02 kg/sq.metre of Mars - and it'll warm Mars up enough to melt the caps and start desorbing CO2 from the soil.

The total amount needed is 3 billion tons, or 60 million per year over 50 years. In 100 years Mars would be warm, wet and have enough air-pressure to throw away the space-suits. If the oxygen-making process in the soil is any guide enough should be generated, as the soil is dampened, to allow plants to grow. With a bit of gene-tweaking surface-going invertebrates, and maybe even fish (in ponds, of course), will be feasible.

With more tweaking and some extra-energy enough oxygen could be formed in ~ 400 years to do away with the gas-masks. If that's what the neo-Martians want.

Adam