Discovering an easily available cache of it is a prerequisite to any serious human mission to the red world that anticipates to return its team back house.
Map of Mars highlighting significant seasonal variations in surface area hydrogen levels.Credit– G. Martinez et al
. The spectrometers determined hydrogen signal increased during the colder months, which shows that water ice might be freezing in the subterranean regions Odyssey was keeping an eye on. During warmer months, the ice would sublimate, carrying away the hydrogen and leading to a drop in Odysseys readings.
In these cases, the water is probably deeper underground, less prone to sublimation in warmer months, and therefore less available for use in exploration objectives.
Finding an easily available cache of it is a requirement to any major human objective to the red world that expects to return its team back house.
A group from the Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI) thinks they might have discovered quickly accessible tanks of water ice at far more temperate latitudes than had actually been traditionally believed. Finding any considerable water source near the equator would be trigger for event, as a lot of large known water deposits lie near the poles, which is much more unwelcoming to human expedition than the rest of the planet..
UT video discussing in-situ resource usage on Mars.
They looked at sub-surface hydrogen levels, which have been studied before.
There was a spike in hydrogen levels in particular parts of the world, especially in Hellas Planitia and Utopia Rupes in the southern and northern hemispheres, respectively. That spike happened to be seasonal, which pointed to a type of source researchers hadnt had the ability to distinguish before.
Map of Mars highlighting considerable seasonal variations in surface hydrogen levels.Credit– G. Martinez et al
. The spectrometers measured hydrogen signal increased throughout the colder months, which indicates that water ice might be freezing in the below ground areas Odyssey was keeping an eye on.
Another finding provides even more credence to the hypothesis that reasonably available water ice is the cause of the signal. Odyssey found other locations with high levels of hydrogen, but they did not reveal the seasonality that the readings at Hellas Planitia and Utopia Rupes did. In these cases, the water is most likely deeper underground, less susceptible to sublimation in warmer months, and therefore less accessible for use in exploration missions.
Figure from the research study paper showing the circulation of hydrogen.Credit– Martinez et al
. If the LPI groups hypothesis turns out to be accurate, that brand-new information might be a game-changer for the place of any future crewed Martian objective.
Find out more: EuroPlanet Society– Scientists use seasons to find water for future Mars astronautsUT– Does Mars Have Seasons?UT– Nothing Says Springtime on Mars Like Explosions of SandLPI– Missing Water on Mars May Be Stored in the Crust.
Lead Image: Image of Mars from Viking Orbiter.Credit– NASA/ JPL -Caltech/ USGS.
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