Mountains and buried ice on Mars
12 December 2011
New images from Mars Express show a mountain range we haven't seen before. The mountains are in an area where radar probing shows us that large amounts of water ice are hiding below, which could be an important source of water for future astronauts.
The mountain range is called Phlegra Montes and extends from the north eastern part of the volcanic area to the northern lowlands. The mountains themselves are probably not volcanic in origin, but have been made by ancient tectonic forces that squeezed different regions of the surface together.
New images from the high-resolution camera on ESA's Mars Express allow us to see the mountains in much more detail than before, and show us that almost every mountain is surrounded by 'lobate debris aprons', which is curved rock debris found below cliffs like these.
Earlier studies have shown that these rocks seem to have moved down the mountain slopes with time, and look similar to the debris found on glaciers here on Earth. This makes scientists think that there could be glaciers buried just below the surface on Mars.
More evidence for quite recent glaciation can be seen inside impact craters in the region. Series of ridges are thought to have developed when the ancient craters filled with snow. Over time, the snow compacted to form glaciers which then sculpted the crater floors.
All these things lead scientists to think that there could be large amounts of water ice just below the surface in Phlegra Montes. If this proves to be true, these ice fields could provide future astronauts with an important source of water on the Red Planet.
