Mars may have a significant amount of water hidden beneath its surface, potentially enough to form a global ocean.
Seismic measurements from NASA's Mars InSight lander support the hypothesis of underground water in the Martian crust, likely originating from ancient rivers and lakes.
Researchers in the University of California, San Diego estimates that there is liquid water in rocks about 11.5-20 km beneath the surface of Mars, with the volume potentially filling a global ocean a mile or so deep.
The water on Mars is believed to have originated from rivers, lakes, and oceans that existed on the planet billions of years ago, and it may be in a liquid state at these depths, with the potential to support microbial life.
The discovery of water in subsurface rock layers on Mars provides an environment that could support microbial life at great depths, although the water would be challenging to extract due to depth and location in pores and cracks.
Geological studies suggest Mars had lakes, rivers, and oceans over 3 billion years ago. The discovery of liquid water deep beneath the surface provides new insights into the potential for past or extant life on the planet.
Mars lost its surface water billions of years ago as its atmosphere thinned. The presence of underground water suggests that surface water seeped into rock formations and formed aquifers when the upper crust was warmer.
The InSight Lander was the U.S. space agency's first craft dedicated to looking beneath Mars's surface and studying its interior. Its data continues to be analyzed by scientists to gain more insight into Mars' interior.
Sources: Fox News, DW, Al Jazeera, The Epoch Times, Times of India, ABC News, Daily Caller, Digital Trends, Aussiedlerbote, CTV News, 1News, The Jakarta Post, The West, Daily Maverick, Manila Bulletin, News Directory 3, Investing.com, Devdiscourse, 10Play
This article was written in collaboration with Generative AI news company Alchemiq.
