Mars has long fascinated scientists with its potential to harbor life and its mysterious past.
Despite being a cold, arid desert today, there is growing evidence that the Red Planet may once have been much wetter, with vast oceans and rivers that could have supported life. But as exploration deepens, new discoveries suggest that Mars may still be hiding its water beneath the surface.
A recent breakthrough made possible by NASA’s InSight Mars lander could change everything we thought we knew about Mars’ water history. What if Mars contains much more liquid water than we ever imagined—enough to fill an ocean?
Here’s how scientists are uncovering these hidden reservoirs and what it could mean for the future of Red Planet exploration.
A year and a half after its mission ended, NASA’s InSight Mars lander could play a key role in helping scientists discover enough water to fill the ocean.
Deep below the InSight landing site, ocean water could be trapped in rock fissures, according to a recent study based on more than 1,300 Martian earthquakes. If research by Vashan Wright, a geologist at the University of California, San Diego, and his team proves accurate, Mars could harbor underground reservoirs of water that exceed the size of its ancient, now-extinct oceans.
The discovery could significantly change the way we search for signs of life on Mars and how future missions to Mars could obtain water, rocket fuel, and oxygen for survival.
Water reservoirs 7 miles below the surface
Wright and his team recently simulated how seismic waves travel through different types of rock deep in the Martian crust, and how fast those waves would travel if cracks and pores in the rock were filled with ice or liquid water. They compared these simulations with InSight seismic data, as well as other mission data on the planet’s gravity and shape.
The model that best matched the actual data showed a deep layer of igneous rock (solidified magma) filled with cracks and fissures formed as the magma cooled. According to the scientists’ models, these cracks are filled with liquid water.
This water-filled rock layer lies 7 to 12 miles below InSight’s location on Elysium Planitia, a vast plain on the equator of Mars. While the surface layers of rock appear dry, models suggest that at a depth of about 7 miles, cracks in the rock contain water. The team isn’t sure if the rest of the planet’s deep crust is similar, but if it is, there could be more than ocean water hidden deep in the Martian subsurface, trapped in cracks in the cooled magma.
Lost water
Geological and climate models suggest that Mars was once much warmer and wetter 3 billion years ago, and more than a third of the planet was covered by oceans, rivers, s, and lakes flooding the land. But that all changed when Mars’ rotating liquid core, which powered its magnetic field, began to cool. As the magnetic field weakened, charged particles from the Sun stripped away much of Mars’ss atmosphere, leaving behind a thin layer composed mostly of carbon dioxide.
With the loss of the atmosphere, most of Mars’ surface water likely evaporated due to the low pressure, causing immediate boiling. Today, the air pressure on the surface of Mars is less than 1 percent of Earth’s.
However, Wright and his colleagues’ findings suggest that the story may be more complex than previously thought. Their research suggests that Mars did not lose most of its water after all. The amount of water they calculate could be trapped deep below the surface, suggesting that Mars’ crust may not have lost most of its water by escaping the atmosphere, as is commonly thought.
What’s next?
Further simulations, considering the possibility of entire oceans of water hidden miles below the surface, could provide new insight into Mars’ water cycle, which is sparse but dynamic. The discovery of water hidden in deep rock fissures could also point to new places to look for evidence of ancient or even contemporary life on Mars. Additionally, future missions to Mars that can drill deep enough could have a reliable source of water to support manned missions.
The discovery of vast reservoirs of water hidden deep beneath the surface of Mars represents a revolutionary shift in our understanding of the planet’s past and present. If confirmed, these findings will not only change the way scientists look for signs of life on Mars but also open up new possibilities for human exploration and colonization. The potential presence of ocean water stored in the planet’s crust suggests that Mars may have retained more of its liquid water than previously thought, offering new hope for future missions to exploit this resource.
Moreover, the possibility of deep subterranean water reservoirs could prompt a reassessment of the Martian water cycle, which may be much more complex than we have assumed. By understanding how water is stored and how it might have been stored below the surface, researchers could gain valuable insights into the history of the planet, including the conditions that may have once supported life.
For future missions, the discovery also presents exciting prospects for harnessing these hidden water resources for life support, rocket fuel, and other essential needs, potentially changing the feasibility of long-term human settlement on Mars.
In conclusion, although much remains to be studied, the implications of these findings are huge. As we continue to explore the depths of Mars, we may uncover more clues that will not only challenge our current knowledge but also pave the way for humanity’s next giant leap into space.