Mars can have significant amounts of water under the surface

In 2018, scientists made the incredible discovery that they had found a "steady body of liquid water" on Mars. A new study goes a step further and suggests that the water supposed to be responsible for the dark streaks on the red planet could come from beneath the surface.

The new study, published in Nature Geoscience, suggests that recurrent slope lines (RSL) may have a "deep underground origin" and not water flows on or just below the surface, as previously thought.

"We think this might not be true," said co-author of the study, Essam Heggy, in a statement. "We propose another hypothesis that they would come from a deep-water source of groundwater that would rise to the surface up the cracks."

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The main author of the study, Abotalib Abotalib, added that while studying the deserts of the Earth, the researchers were able to suggest that it was the same for our celestial neighbor.

"The experience we have gained from our research on desert hydrology has been the cornerstone of this conclusion," added Abotalib in his statement. "We observed the same mechanisms in the North African Sahara and in the Arabian Peninsula, which allowed us to explore the same mechanism on Mars."

"The spatial correlation between source regions of recurrent slope lineages and multi-scale fractures (such as joints and faults) in the southern mid-latitudes and at Valles Marineris suggests that recurrent slope lineages are preferably derived from tectonic fractures. and related to impact, "the researchers wrote. in the summary of the study. "We suggest that deep groundwater sometimes surfaces on Mars under present conditions."

The researchers were able to look at images of NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, which discovered the RSL 8 years ago. From there, they examined 3 specific craters and streaks in the Valles Marineris complex and found a correlation between RSL and defects, according to Space.com.

The depths of the groundwater could be significant, reaching almost half a mile (2460 feet) deep, according to Heggy. "Such depth requires us to consider deeper sounding techniques to find the source of this groundwater compared to finding shallow water sources," he added.

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If the water is as deep as Heggy and Abotalib believe, this could indicate more similarities between Mars and Earth, Heggy even going so far as to say that it might suggest "that they have an evolution similar, to a certain extent ".

Researchers believe that if they are able to understand how groundwater is formed on Mars, its precise location and movement, it could help us better understand our own planet and if we suffer the same climate changes as those that occurred on Earth. March. the past 3 billion years

"Understanding the evolution of Mars is crucial to understanding the long-term evolution of our own Earth and groundwater is a key part of this process," Heggy said.

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