The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Mars Express orbiter has discovered enough ice on Mars to cover the entire red planet with a shallow ocean if it melted. This situation was officially reported Web site ESA.
Although traces of water ice have been found on Mars before, Mars Express’ latest discovery is the largest. As analysis of radar signals showed, the ice deposits are located near the planet’s equator and extend to a depth of 3.5 kilometers. They are hidden under a crust of hardened ash and dust hundreds of meters thick. Martian ice does not appear to be a single, clear block; It lies in layers and is heavily contaminated with dust.
According to scientists, when the ice deposits melt, Mars will be covered with a continuous layer of water 1.5 to 2.7 meters deep. Currently, access to the underground glaciers of the Martian equator is difficult for missions from Earth.
Experts believe that the presence of ice may be a result of the deviation of Mars’ axis. It is believed that throughout the history of the red planet, the axial tilt of the planet’s poles has changed quite chaotically. Currently, Mars’ poles are tilted 25 degrees to the ecliptic (compared to Earth, which is tilted 23 degrees), but in the past this angle could vary from 10 degrees to 60 degrees. .
During periods of high inclination, when the poles are closer to the Sun than to the equator, large amounts of water ice can form on the equatorial surface. This ice could then be buried under ash and dust and remain there to this day.
Previous scientists I learnedGeological activity in the interior of Mars continues.