Market Desk (nature & science): These days, Mars is known as the ‘Red Planet’. Now this ancient Mars is on count of how it’s become dry, dusty landscape in iron oxide. In addition, the atmosphere is extremely thin and cold and no water can exist on the surface in any form other than ice. But Mars was once very different place with warmer and flowing water on its surface. For years, scientists have attempted to determine how long natural bodies existed on Mars and whether or not they were discontinue or persistent.
During the ordinary course of life, we tend to think of planets as being unmoving and unchanging. On long enough timescales brief even in geological time, we see that the worlds are constantly shifting and evolving through forces both internal and external.
Another important finding is how much water Mars once had and whether this was enough to support life. According to a new study by an international team of planetary scientists, Mars may have had enough water 4.5bn years ago with cover ocean up to 300 meters deep. Along with organic molecules and other elements, they argue, these conditions indicate that Mars may have been the first planet in the Solar System to support life.
The study was conducted by researchers from the University of Paris, the University of Copenhagen (Centre for Star and Planet Formation), the Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology and the University of Bern Physics Institute. The paper that describes their research and findings recently appeared in Science Advances. As they indicate in their paper, the terrestrial planets endured a period of significant asteroid impacts following their formation over 4.5bn years ago.
Now the study is developing as because of the tectonic plate on earth, it has erased the memory of the first 10mn years of birth of the planet. But there is no tectonic plate of Mars. So, scientists are able to find out much of the early birth of the Mars.
Their findings showed that Mars may have been covered in ocean when earth was still a molten ball of rock. All questions related to Mars’ geological and environmental evolution will be investigated further by robotic missions this decade (followed by crewed missions in the 2030).
