Signs of a Huge Ocean Discovered on Mars: Similarities Can Be Seen on Earth 0 8

Over the past 20 years, scientists have discovered evidence of rivers, lakes, and other bodies of water on the Red Planet through rovers. The entire northern hemisphere of Mars is at a lower elevation than the southern hemisphere and has significantly fewer craters. This indicated the existence of an ancient ocean, but evidence of a coastline has been somewhat contradictory. The authors of the study used another terrestrial feature of oceans to find evidence that a huge northern ocean existed on Mars, writes Focus.

Possible coastlines of the ocean on Mars apparently had completely different elevations, with differences of several kilometers. On Earth, the location of coastlines changes significantly, sometimes by tens of meters per year. Scientists wondered if coastlines are the best topographic indicator of an ocean. They concluded that instead of looking for coastlines, one should search for continental shelves. According to the authors of the study, coastlines change very quickly and are not even topographic indicators of ancient bodies of water on Earth.

By studying data from our planet, scientists found that despite changes in the coastline, the continental shelf remains quite stable over time. The continental shelf is an underwater area extending for hundreds of kilometers, with a low curvature in elevation. Essentially, it is a gentle, wide slope leading to a steep drop-off to the deep ocean floor.

Scientists conducted a similar study on Mars and found that there is also a similar zone in the northern hemisphere of the planet. This zone has revealed evidence of coastal deposits, deltas, and ancient rivers. On Earth, the continental shelf contains all of this as well.

Mars does not have tectonic plates, so there are no continents like those on Earth. Instead, the shelf is referred to as a coastal shelf, and scientists believe its formation took a very long time. The presence of this coastal shelf suggests the existence of an ocean that was stable for millions of years.

This discovery is significant for determining the potential habitability of Mars in the past, as well as for identifying locations where evidence of ancient life on the Red Planet should be sought. The coastal shelf may contain signs of extraterrestrial life forms.