China’s Zhurong rover has found compelling evidence of an ancient ocean on Mars that existed around 3.5 billion years ago. The rover detected features like pitted cones, polygonal troughs, and etched flows around its landing site in the Utopia Planitia region, which suggest the presence of past water activity.
The researchers estimate that the ocean first formed around 3.68 billion years ago, with the surface likely freezing over the next 230 million years as the ocean gradually receded and ultimately disappeared around 3.42 billion years ago.
The findings provide strong support for the long-standing theory that Mars once had a large ocean covering much of its northern hemisphere. However, one outside researcher expressed skepticism, arguing that Martian wind and erosion over billions of years could have destroyed evidence of an ancient shoreline.
While the overall theory remains debated, the new evidence from the Zhurong rover adds an important piece to the puzzle of Mars’ early history and whether it was once capable of hosting life, like Earth’s ancient ocean environments. Definitively proving the existence of a Martian ocean would require bringing back rock samples for closer analysis.
Sources: Interesting Engineering And ScienceAlert
