While there’s no disputing the presence of mineral-rich sediment, the Hong Kong study challenges the notion that the hardened sediment that now makes up Mount Sharp in the middle of Gale Crater is the result of slowly evaporating lakes. Instead of deep lakes and rivers, the study’s authors suggest that wind, acid rain and erosion are responsible for currently observed conditions. Given its position straddling the “hot” and “cold” sides of Mars, the crater could have been a primordial cauldron of life.Īccording to a new study from the University of Hong Kong, however, the amount of water present may have been much smaller than originally thought. It’s part of why Curiosity went exploring Gale Crater. Don’t Rain on My ParadeĮxisting interpretations of data suggest that Gale Crater once held massive amounts of water, possibly as one giant lake on Mars or as a series of smaller lakes and rivers. Martian lakes, however, seemed relatively safe from this scientific back-and-forth - until now. If this is true, it challenges the notion that primordial conditions for life on Earth may have once been mirrored on Mars. Instead, the escape of elements into space happened rapidly enough that oceans were out of the question. Louis suggests that the Red Planet’s size and mass (one-half and one-tenth of Earth’s, respectively) made it impossible for oceans to form. But another theory suggests that off-planet evaporation wasn’t enough to account for all of Mars’ water, and some of it - between 30% and 99% - remains trapped in the crust.Īs NPR notes, a new study from Washington University in St. Low Martian gravity made it possible for much of this water to escape into space, and the planet eventually dried out as a result. For example, the Mars Ocean Hypothesis suggests that four billion years ago the planet had enough water to create a massive ocean 100 to 1,500 meters deep. Unsurprisingly, there’s no clear consensus here. Sure, it was wet, but when and how did Mars dry up? Finding these answers will be tricky since we’re looking at the end result and trying to interpret what led up to the current conditions. What’s less certain is exactly how much water it had and how it got there. There’s no doubt that Mars once had water. Now, a new theory suggests that acid rain and erosion may be responsible for much of Gale’s geological makeup, which raises an interesting question: Water we going to do about it? Water, Water … Somewhere? This naturally prompted further investigation, so Curiosity targeted Gale Crater, which showed signs of having been a lake on Mars billions of years ago. Evidence of ancient water on Mars is a big deal, as it bolsters the theory that, at one point in the Red Planet’s past, it was capable of supporting life.
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