Recently discovered salt water on the surface of modern-day Mars could answer whether there was ever life on the Red Planet, scientists revealed. The Chinese Zhurong rover found evidence of salty liquid water droplets at low Martian altitudes on dunes on the planet that are millions of years old - giving clues to the planet's past.
Though calculations have previously demonstrated that conditions for water are possible on Mars today, this is the first occasion in which evidence of liquid water has been found on our neighbouring planet. According to the study's lead author, Professor Xiaoguang Qin, the discovery could be not only vital in understanding the evolutionary history of Mars but also in providing clues in future searches for extra-terrestrial life.
The Zhurong rover, which is part of China's Tianwen-1 Mars exploration mission, landed on Mars in 2021 at a landing site at the southern edge of the Utopia Planitia plain - the largest impact basin in our solar system. The researchers used data obtained from cameras on the rover to study the different-scale surface features and material compositions of dunes within the landing area.
