Scientists announced this week that the Zhurong Mars rover has discovered new evidence of water on the Red Planet in a large impact basin. This area is believed to have contained liquid water during the Amazonian epoch, the planet’s most recent geologic epoch, and currently, notable stores of water in the form of hydrated minerals and possibly ground ice.
Researchers, led by the National Space Science Center under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, utilized data gathered by China’s Mars rover Zhurong on the sedimentary and mineral characteristics of southern Utopia Planitia, a vast plain in the northern hemisphere of Mars. The bright-toned rocks Zhurong’s camera caught as a layer of “duricrust” was interpreted as being sculpted by a substantial quantity of liquid water. Since there is evidence of hydrated minerals on the surface, future astronauts may use it for various purposes. With that said, it’s only two more years until JAXA sends the Mitsubishi Space Probe on its Martian Moons Exploration (MMX) mission.
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