Mars may have once been home to sun-soaked, sandy beaches with gentle, lapping waves according to a new study published today (Feb. 24) in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
Mars may have once been home to sun-soaked, sandy beaches with gentle, lapping waves according to a new study published today (Feb. 24) in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
An international team of scientists, including researchers at Penn State, used data from the Zhurong Mars rover to identify hidden layers of rock under the planet’s surface that strongly suggest the presence of an ancient northern ocean. The new research offers the clearest evidence yet that the planet once contained a significant body of water and a more habitable environment for life, according to Benjamin Cardenas, assistant professor of geology at Penn State and co-author on the study.
“We’re finding places on Mars that used to look like ancient beaches and ancient river deltas,” Cardenas said. “We found evidence for wind, waves, no shortage of sand — a proper, vacation-style beach.”
Read more at Penn State
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