New Study Reveals Lakes Beneath Surface of Mars

A new scientific study reveals there are several lakes beneath the surface of Mars. Roma Tre University's Elena Pettinelli led a team of researchers in this study that borrowed techniques scientists currently use to study lakes beneath Antarctic glaciers, to study similar lakes under the surface of Mars, according to a report by Independent. They used something called MARSIS, which stands for Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionosphere Sounding, to scan the surface of the planet. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-25-best-sci-fi-movies&captions=true"] More specifically, MARSIS sends radar pulses across the planet and these pulses reach subsurface levels of Mars before bouncing back to the scientists that sent them. According to Independent, a breakthrough study in 2018 revealed that a large lake had been found beneath Mars but scientists at the time questioned whether enough data had been gathered to truly conclude that the body found was that of water. This new study by Pettinelli's team seems to solidify those earlier finding as the data gathered through MARSIS confirmed the bodies discovered were, in fact, liquid water. The team also discovered it wasn't just one large lake but a network of lakes considered "hypersaline solutions," or in other words – very salty water. It's that concentration of salt that allows the liquid to remain liquid, despite the extremely cold and otherwise freezing temperatures of Mars' South Pole, which is where the lakes were found. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=cosmos-possible-worlds-gallery&captions=true"] Considering that liquid water is a necessity for living organisms to survive, this study could help further the possibility of alien life on Mars. The research team have already plotted future work to further study Mars, its environmental makeup, and whether or not there are legitimate traces of alien life on the planet. Elsewhere in the universe, it was recently discovered there might be possible signs of life on Venus and that scientists have detected extragalactic radio signals arriving in an unexplained pattern. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.

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