Grad Students Find Missing Link in Early Martian Water Cycle

Missing link in early Martian water cycle discovered

Astronomers have filled a large gap in knowledge about Mars' water cycle. Their research on water percolating from surface to aquifer could change the picture of what early Mars was like, suggesting that less of the planet's water may have been available to become rain and refill lakes and oceans.

Terraforming Mars Could Be Within Reach

Mars has fascinated us for centuries. Since the invention of the telescope, science fiction writers have mused over its habitability. Its location in the Solar System's habitable zone suggests it could, in theory, support life—despite lacking a global magnetic field and surface water. In a new paper, researchers propose that terraforming Mars is now an achievable goal. They outline methods for warming the planet, releasing pioneer species to bui…

Grad students find missing link in early Martian water cycle

Billions of years ago, water flowed on the surface of Mars. But scientists have an incomplete picture of how the red planet's water cycle worked.

On Mars, each relief, each shade of colour, can revive hypotheses of several decades old. Failing to find rivers or seas there, scientists trace the least clues of a past or present activity of water on Mars, whether in rocks, ice or ground patterns. Among the most intriguing traces, some dark marks observed on the sides of craters have long sown doubt. Behind their apparent fluidity, these formations conceal an unexpected process, much drier th…

Beneath Mars’ Surface, Giant Structures Leave Experts Speechless

Giant, dense structures have been detected deep beneath the surface of Mars, stirring both curiosity and excitement among planetary scientists. These hidden masses could reshape our understanding of the Red Planet’s interior and hint at volcanic activity that may still be ongoing beneath its surface. A Massive Underground Anomaly Beneath Tharsis Montes Researchers recently confirmed the existence of a vast underground mass measuring roughly 1,75…

In a new study, led by scientists from the University of Bern and the University of Brown, half a million strange marks were mapped on the surface of Mars, to determine whether water would be a key factor in the appearance of stripes that have intrigued researchers for years. The study, cited by the European Space Agency (ESA), details that a global map with almost 500,000 strip characteristics was generated on the red planet, obtaining the larg…