The first thing most people think of when they consider Mars is its deep red color. The Romans associated the planet with their god of war because it reminded them of blood while the Egyptians called it "Her Desher," meaning "the red one." The planet didn’t get such a distinctive, rosy color by accident of course — but for the first time researchers have identified a single mineral they believe is responsible for Martian redness — and that mineral’s presence also indicates the potential presence of life.
A new study in the journal Nature Communications reveals that Mars is red for very much the same reason it may have once been home to life — namely, that it was a wet planet. This is in line with research from last year that detailed how Mars was covered in bodies of water in its distant past.
