Where did Mars' water go? A new study using data from NASA's InSight mission provides evidence for oceans of water on Mars, deep below the surface in the crust.
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Mars probably had liquid water on its surface billions of years ago. But Mars' water disappeared over time, leaving the planet cold and dry. Where did Mars' water go? billions of years ago. But Mars' water disappeared over time, leaving the planet cold and dry. Where did Mars' water go? Could water now lie below Mars' surface? New research from from Scripps Institution of Oceanography – based on data from NASA's InSight lander – suggests this possibility. New research from from Scripps Institution of Oceanography – based on data from NASA's InSight lander – suggests this possibility. Mars' underground water might be enough to form a global ocean, these scientists say, if it were on the surface. Oceans of water on Mars, underground? There is ample evidence today for liquid water on Mars a few billion years ago. But today's Mars is a frozen desert. Where did its water go? A new study, led by Vashan Wright, a geophysicist at UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography, provides potential evidence of water – lots of it – deep below the surface in the crust. The findings are based on data from NASA's now-defunct InSight mission. The researchers said on August 12, 2024, that Mars' mid-crust may be saturated with water, enough to form a global ocean if that water were on the surface. The researchers published their peer-reviewed study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on August 12, 2024. Wright posted the news on X on August 12: ? Liquid Ground Water Found on Mars ? by: Myself, Michael Manga, and Mattias Morzfeldhttps://t.co/FIVXp1IZ0T 1/n https://t.co/MQYQMFOaCL — Island Prof ??? (@DrVasshe) August 12, 2024 Water on Mars may lay in ancient aquifers Mars had rivers, lakes and possibly even oceans. But, billions of years ago, the planet lost all its surface water. Mars' surface became dry, cold and inhospitable. Scientists have come up with hypotheses about where all the water went. There is evidence that some of it escaped into space.…