Subterranean Ocean Potentially Discovered on Mars, Study Reveals

Intriguing new research based on the seismic readings from NASA's Mars InSight lander suggests that enough water to form an underground ocean may be trapped beneath the surface of Mars. The seismic data collected before the lander ceased operations in 2022 has led scientists to theorize that Mars's subsurface could harbor water in quantities sufficient to fill a global ocean, potentially unlocking secrets about the planet's capacity for microbial life.

This revelation comes after the assessment of over 1,300 marsquakes detected by InSight. By modeling these seismic observations with computer algorithms, researchers were able to deduce that water trapped within subterranean rock fissures was the most likely explanation for their findings. The study, released on Monday in the prestigious Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, suggests that this underground cache of water was trapped billions of years ago when Mars was home to rivers, lakes, and seas.

Dr. Vashan Wright from the University of California San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography served as the lead scientist for the project. He drew parallels between the potential for life on Mars and certain habitats on Earth, noting that places with sufficient moisture and energy sources often harbor microbial life well below the surface. The existence of these essential ingredients in the Martian subsoil could indicate past or even present life if the study's interpretations are correct.

NASA's InSight Lander was tasked with excavating the mysteries that lie beneath the Martian crust, offering insights into the planet's geological and seismic character. Positioned at the Martian equatorial site known as Elysium Planitia, InSight's findings led Wright and his colleagues to propose that the subterranean water, if distributed uniformly across the planet, could contribute to an ocean between one to two kilometers in depth.

Confirming the presence of this subterranean water would require drilling and specialized equipment, a step that scientists are keen to undertake to explore the possibility of life beyond Earth. This ambitious endeavor would build on the trove of data meticulously collected by the InSight lander.

Mars's current arid state starkly contrasts with its ancient wet climate; scientists posit that as the Martian atmosphere thinned over billions of years, the planet lost its surface water, causing vast quantities to either escape into space or become enveloped under the crust. This study contributes a vital piece to the evolving puzzle of Mars's complex environmental history and its implications for extraterrestrial life.