With significant effort, humanity has finally proven that Mars once had a thick atmosphere.
However, over time, the planet’s weak magnetic field failed to protect the Red Planet from solar bombardment, causing its atmosphere to escape into space.
Mars once had a thick atmosphere.
Yet, the question of whether Mars could have supported life in the past remains in doubt. The reason is that this planet is too far from the Sun, resulting in unstable surface temperatures. According to images from the Curiosity rover, Mars’ surface was once very cold, covered mostly with sand and barren terrain.
However, a recent study from the Georgia Institute of Technology and the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) program has confirmed that beneath the planet’s surface lies a significant layer of carbonates, indicating that the temperatures on Mars were relatively warm and moist, entirely suitable for supporting life.
The temperatures on Mars were relatively warm and moist, entirely suitable for supporting life.
According to Dr. Janice Bishop from the SETI Institute: “The identification of ancient carbonate and clay layers beneath Mars’ surface indicates that the climate on this planet was vastly different from today.”
Mars has now been shown to have liquid water flowing on its surface, but whether water existed there in the past remains a contentious issue, despite many scientists agreeing on this point.
If water did exist on the Red Planet, scientists believe there would be a layer of carbonates and clay beneath the surface—evidence that this area once had an environment completely suitable for life.
Mars has now been proven to have liquid water flowing on its surface.
Previously, these substances were rarely found on the planet’s surface. However, research has now indicated evidence of them in the Lucaya tectonic plate, with a layer of carbonates and clay approximately 3.8 billion years old buried over 5 km deep in the crust.
Professor James Wray, the head of the research, stated that their conclusions were based on data from the CRIMS (Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars).
CRIMS Spectrometer.
This research not only provides additional evidence that life may have formed on Mars but also offers potential areas for study for future missions to explore the Red Planet.
