Seismic data collected by the now-defunct North American InSight spacecraft suggests that Mars has deep, porous rocks filled with liquid water, an essential ingredient for life as we know it, the findings were announced on August 12.
The data allowed scientists to estimate that the amount of groundwater could cover the entire planet at a depth of between one and two kilometers, the University of California in the United States, which participated in analyzing the data, said in a statement.
According to researchers, the amount of liquid water inside would be enough to fill the oceans on the surface of Mars, which disappeared more than three billion years ago.
Such a large reservoir of water lies in tiny cracks and pores in the rocks in the middle of the crust (the outer layer of Mars’ interior), between 11.5 and 20 kilometers below the surface, so it would be of little use to a human colony that wants to settle on Mars, as North American aerospace companies like SpaceX, owned by entrepreneur Elon Musk, want.
Scientists point out that even on Earth, drilling one kilometer deep is a challenge.
However, the authors of the investigation highlight that at least one site has been identified on Mars, which would theoretically be able to support (microbial) life.
The InSight robot, whose mission on Mars ended in 2022, was sent by NASA four years ago to study the planet’s interior and atmosphere.
During the mission, the instrument detected Martian earthquakes of magnitude 5, meteorite impacts and “explosions” from volcanic regions, producing seismic waves that allowed geophysicists to study the interior of the planet.
According to the authors of the study, which will be published in the academic journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, understanding the water cycle on Mars is essential to understanding the evolution of the planet’s climate, surface and interior.
Although NASA and private companies in North America intend to send manned missions to Mars in the medium to long term, the planet is inhospitable.
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