Mars Once Boasted of 'Stunning Beaches' That Experts Believe are Buried Under the Planet's Surface
Mars is the hope of many astronomers in their pursuit of extraterrestrial life. Many findings suggest that once upon a time, there was a habitable environment on the Red Planet. A recent study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences sheds more light on an ancient landscape that possibly existed on this planet.
The study indicated that Mars once boasted stunning beaches, stated The Guardian. Past findings have already established that the planet once contained water bodies. This research indicates that the water bodies were part of beach-like landforms. Experts think that at present, there are multiple buried beaches under the surface of Mars. This assertion was made based on data garnered from China’s Zhurong rover.
The rover provided below-ground imaging data of the planet. "Zhurong was sent to southern Utopia Planitia near locations where paleoshorelines have been mapped from satellite data," said Dr Benjamin Cardenas, a co-author of the research from Penn State University. The data corresponding to the northern lowlands of Mars was very similar to what had been observed for Earth's shorelines. This made experts claim that the lowlands are possibly enveloping a beach. In both cases, there appears to be a presence of tilted subsurface material. This bend could be towards any element like a lowland or an ocean.
Researchers believe this Martian beach was supposedly above the planet's surface but later submerged. The data implies that the beach repeatedly shifted positions. There seems to be some sort of dipping happening for this whole landform towards the north. This made experts imply that the so-called beach grew into the ocean.
The study further claimed that the beach was the landform, the discovered structure aligned most with, as per examinations. The team attempted to match the features with other well-known formations on Mars but did not get positive results. "We rule out volcanic, rivers, and wind-blown sand dunes. All of these are pretty commonly seen on Mars, but the structure just doesn’t fit any of them," Cardenas said.
Experts are ecstatic with the findings as it provides astronomers with multiple exciting possibilities regarding the planet's past. "It’s a simple structure, but it tells you there had to be tides, there had to be waves, there had to be a nearby river supplying sediment, and all these things had to be active for some extended period of time," Cardenas said. The discovery has been deemed crucial because previous examinations have revealed that beach-like landforms played a prominent role in the creation of life.
"A beach is an interface between shallow water, air, and land. It’s these sorts of environments where it’s thought life first came to be on Earth, and I think it would be a great place to send a follow-up mission looking for signs of past life," Cardenas added.
Though the analysis showcased similarities in the features of the northern lowlands of Mars and Earth's shorelines, researchers don't think this manifested in the environment of these two landforms. According to experts, the Martian beaches were chilly and did not possibly have trees. Researchers are hopeful that one day they will be able to view this magnificent beach.