There is a significant amount of water ice on Mars, even at the equator. The deposit is hidden beneath the surface, extending for several kilometers and covered by hundreds of meters of dust, and constitutes the largest quantity of water ever found in this part of the planet.
The presence of ice was confirmed by the European Space Agency’s Mars Express probe, in one studio led by the American Smithsonian Institution and published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.
The discovery was made possible thanks to the Marsis radar instrument on board the probe, created by Thales Alenia Space (joint venture between Thales and Leonardo). The sensors that guided Mars Express towards the Red Planet and which contribute to maintaining its correct orientation are also Italian, built in Leonardo’s factory in Campi Bisenzio near Florence.
“I am very happy that the creator of the discovery is Mars Express, which after many years since its launch (which took place in 2003) continues to abundantly repay the hopes and expectations placed, as well as the economic investment”, says Enrico Flamini, president of International Research School of Planetary Science at Chieti-breaking latest news University. “I think that the result obtained will also have positive effects on the production of other research – comments Flamini – which until now lacked solid evidence like this”.
A drawing of ESA’s Mars Express probe
(ansa)
Mars Express returned to examine the area known as ‘Medusae Fossae’, already visited 15 years ago, which had provided clues to a possible underground ice deposit.
Now comes confirmation: “We explored the area again using more recent data from the Marsis radar and found that the deposits are even thicker than we thought, up to 3.7 kilometers,” explains Thomas Watters, who led the study .
“What’s interesting is that the radar signals match what we would expect to see from layered ice – adds Watters – and are similar to the signals we see from the polar caps of Mars, which we know are very ice-rich.”
The discovery is not exactly a surprise: traces of relatively recent glaciers near the equator, for example, were identified thanks to a study led by the Mars Institute and Seti (the scientific organization dedicated to the search for intelligent extraterrestrial life), presented at March last year.
“We had some clues from other missions,” Flamini says. “The area of Medusae Fossae is characterized by beds of ancient rivers and for years we have wondered whether the water that once flowed here had evaporated completely. The presence of the ice deposits now identified – continues the researcher – would confirm the hypothesis that there was once a large lake or sea there”.
If it melted, the ice buried under Medusae Fossae would cover the entire planet with a layer of water between 1.5 and 2.7 meters deep, enough to fill the Red Sea. The extent and location of these frozen deposits make them very valuable for future exploration of Mars.
“Unfortunately these deposits are found at a certain depth and therefore are not easily accessible – says Enrico Flamini – but there could be others closer to the surface”.