Briny Liquid Water Found On Mars

Abstract

Scientists announced they have observed seasonal trickles of briny liquid water flowing down sloped surfaces of Mars (Nat. Geosci. 2015, DOI: 10.1038/ngeo2546). Although the source of the water is yet unknown, the case for flowing liquid is nearly unequivocal, thanks to spectra collected by the National Aeronautics & Space Administration’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO), which identified aqueous salts in the dark streams This discovery provides a new, definitive target for the search for life on Mars. “The existence of liquid water, even if super salty, gives us the possibility to describe a way how life might survive,” said John Grunsfeld, the associate administrator for the science mission directorate at NASA, at a press conference last week. “Now, this question is not abstract—it’s a concrete one we could answer.” Although ample evidence exists that ancient Mars was covered with watery oceans and lakes, there’s never been conclusive evidence that liquid water ...