Scientists have uncovered evidence a huge river like the Mississippi flowed on Mars. Researchers say rocks seen in recent images from the Red Planet may have been formed by a very fast, deep river.
They are now debating what kind of powerfully flowing water formed those curves, based on the "first of its kind evidence" captured by NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover. Suggestions include "a river like the Mississippi, which winds snakelike across the landscape, or a braided river like Nebraska’s Platte, which forms small islands of sediment called sandbars."
A detailed mosaic has been created of a location nicknamed “Skrinkle Haven” using the rover's Mastcam-Z camera between Feb. 28 and March 9, 2023. “Skrinkle Haven” offers the clearest example of these curved rock layers – called “the curvilinear unit” – that had previously only been seen from space.
