The caption of this beautiful ESA image of the Martian surface is on the South Pole of Capsucino Mars.
ESA / DLR / FU Berlin / Bill Dunford
Be sure to pack some weapons and floristry when you fly to Mars. There may be a whole world of pools of water under the southern ice cap of the dry and dusty planet.
A new study led by researchers at the University of Roma Tre in Italy strengthens the case of A. 2018 Martian Polar Discover a hidden lake under ice, And then expands the search to include three new ponds.
Researchers used radar data from the European Space Agency’s Mars Express bit rabiter to actually identify liquid water.
“Now, considering more data and analyzing it differently, three new ponds have been discovered.” ESA said in a statement The team published it on Monday Journal of Nature Studies in Astronomy on Monday.
The lakes seem to be floating under a heavy layer of ice. The largest lake is about 19 miles (30 km) across and is surrounded by a series of small ponds.
Researchers hope that the water must be incredibly salty to remain liquid at low temperatures. A different The 2019 study suggested volcanic activity Can help protect water from freezing, but existing papers tend to be too lean in the concept of salt.
“While it is not possible to remain stable on the surface of the water today, the new findings open up the possibility that an entire system of ancient lakes could be underground, perhaps millions or billions of years old,” the ESA said.
Humans are busy searching for signs of life on Mars – especially evidence of old germs. NASA’s new Perseverance Rover will continue this research From the surface of the Red Planet. Liquid water reservoirs will be particularly attractive places to explore for life, but these ponds will be very difficult to reach. There is 1 mile (1.5 kilometers) of snow along the way.
We may not get a big response from Martin South Pole anytime soon, but it could give us a future goal for our research when our technology becomes a challenge.
