Most Martian glaciers are pure water ice, study finds
Turns out, Mars is hiding a lot more water than we thought—over 80% of its glaciers are actually pure water ice covered by just a thin layer of dust or rock.
This discovery, led by Yuval Steinberg's team and published in Icarus, flips the old idea that these glaciers were mostly rocky.
Research hints at Mars's past climate
Researchers used NASA's SHARAD radar on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to scan five different glacier sites.
The radar showed all the sites had nearly the same high level of ice purity, which hints that Mars once had a colder and wetter climate with lots of snowfall or frost.
Implications for human missions to Mars
These massive ice reserves could be game-changers for future astronauts heading to Mars—they might have easy access to water right under their feet.
Plus, understanding how these glaciers formed helps us piece together what ancient Mars was really like.