Marss Medusae Fossae Formation (MFF) where a dry layer of dust hides deposits of water ice.
The red indicates the thickest ice.
The Red Planet is seemingly the antithesis of the water-rich blue-green surface of Earth.
Mars’s Medusae Fossae Formation (MFF) where a dry layer of dust hides deposits of water ice. The red indicates the thickest ice. (Photo:Planetary Science Institute/Smithsonian Institution)
The new dating suggesting the existence of these ice deposits comes from the ESAs Mars Express space craft.
In fact, the very reality of the dust not settling deeper and compacting suggested something lay underneath.
Now, the MARSIS radar has provided updated data suggesting just what material is deposited.
The Medusae Fossae. (Photo:ESA/DLR/FU Berlin,CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO)
These deposits are up to 3.7 kilometers (2.3 miles) thick.
The deposits of ice are massive.
The volume is comparative to the water in the Red Sea.
The line shows a stretch of surface where radar revealed the water ice below. (Photo:CReSIS/KU/Smithsonian Institution)
How long ago did these ice deposits form, and what was Mars like at that time?
If confirmed to be water ice, these massive deposits would change our understanding of Mars climate history.
Any reservoir of ancient water would be a fascinating target for human or robotic exploration.
The Eumenides Dorsum within the MFF. (Photo:Caltech/JPL Global CTX Mosaic of Mars/Smithsonian Institution)
For some time now, scientists have agreed there is water on Mars.
Locating it in these massive ice deposits tells us a lot more about the planet’s environment.
(Photo:CReSIS/KU/Smithsonian Institution)
The Eumenides Dorsum within the MFF.
