Remnants of a modern glacier have been found near Mars' equator, suggesting ice may still exist at shallow depths in the area. If confirmed, such a discovery could have significant implications for future human exploration on the Red Planet.
These features consist of light-colored sulfate salts, crevasse fields and moraine bands, which are signs of a "relict glacier. This relict glacier is located near Mars' equator at 7° 33' S, 93° 14' W, and is estimated to be 3. The presence of such a glacier suggests there may have been surface water ice on Mars more recently than previously thought, which has implications on both our understanding of the Red Planet's habitability and future exploration missions.
And where some of the volcanic materials came in contact with glacier ice, chemical reactions har mars glaciärer have taken place at the boundary between the two to form a hardened layer of sulfate salts," Sourabh Shubham, co-author of the study and graduate student at the University of Maryland's Department of Geology, said in the statement.
The LTDs observed are made up of sulfate salts that form when freshly erupted pyroclastic materials — volcanic ash, pumice and hot lava — come in contact with water ice. As these deposits build up, they form a hardened, crusty salt layer.
Over time, erosion would have exposed the salt deposits, along with crevasses and moraine bands, which are unique to glaciers. It's very intriguing. Previous research has found glacial activity near Mars' equator in the more distant past, whereas more recent glacial activity has only been seen at higher latitudes until now.
Although water ice is not stable at the surface of Mars near the equator at these elevations, it is possible that some of the glacier's water ice may be preserved beneath the sulfate salts. Further research is needed to confirm, but if water ice is in fact present at this equatorial region, there's the possibility it could be extracted as a resource for future missions.
But the latter environments are typically colder and more challenging for humans and robots. If there were equatorial locations where ice might be found at shallow depth, then we'd have the best of both environments: warmer conditions for human exploration and still access to ice," Lee said in the statement.
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Samantha Mathewson joined Space. She received a B. Previously, her work has been published in Nature World News. When not writing or reading about science, Samantha enjoys traveling to new places and taking photos! Open menu Close menu Space Space.
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