Oceans’ worth of ancient water may have been locked up in minerals in Mars's crust, increasing estimates for the total amount of that once flowed on the red planet.
After Perseverance touches down tomorrow, what is found in the reddish dust of Mars may tell the rover (and some really anxious scientists back on Earth) why its atmosphere vanished or if Jezero crater really was a lake, but what is coming out of Mars may also reveal things about the Red Planet’s distant past.
Though water is already known to exist on the surface of Mars, but this is the first time scientists have discovered water vapor in the Martian atmosphere. Most of its water is in ice caps or underground, but some vaporizes straight into the air by sublimation. The hydrogen from that vapor is escaping the atmosphere. Isotopes of hydrogen from that vapor may or may not show evidence of how Mars lost its liquid water, and whether life could have existed on a planet that is thought to have morphed from something Earthlike into a freezing dystopian hellscape.
In two different studies out this week, scientists discover that Mars is leaking water out through its atmosphere while the ExoMars Trace Gas orbiter spots a new gas for the first time
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The first halogen gas on Mars has been detected, shedding new light on the history of the Red Planet.
The ESA-Roscosmos ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter spacecraft detected hydrogen chloride, which is comprised of one hydrogen atom and one chlorine atom.
Gases based on chlorine or sulphur are possible indicators of volcanic activity, which Mars scientists were already looking to discover, but the new find has some strange qualities.
The fact that this particular discovery was made in distant locations at the same time, without any other gases that would be expected from Martian volcanos, means that an unknown process between the surface of the planet and its atmosphere is taking place.
ExoMars discovers new gas and traces water loss on Mars
Sea salt embedded in the dusty surface of Mars and lofted into the planet’s atmosphere has led to the discovery of hydrogen chloride – the first time the ESA-Roscosmos ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter has detected a new gas. The spacecraft is also providing new information about how Mars is losing its water.
A major quest in Mars exploration is hunting for atmospheric gases linked to biological or geological activity, as well as understanding the past and present water inventory of the planet, to determine if Mars could ever have been habitable and if any water reservoirs could be accessible for future human exploration. Two new results from the ExoMars team published today in