A new study suggests that liquid water might exist beneath the surface of Mars today, raising exciting possibilities for life on the Red Planet.
Scientists Ikuo Katayama from Hiroshima University and Yuya Akamatsu from the Research Institute for Marine Geodynamics analyzed seismic data from NASA’s InSight lander and found clues that point to underground water.
Seismic Clues from Marsquakes
InSight, which landed on Mars in 2018, carried a special instrument called SEIS (Seismic Experiment for the Interior Structure).
This seismometer detects vibrations, or seismic waves, caused by Marsquakes or meteorite impacts.
These waves travel through the planet’s interior and change depending on the materials they pass through. By studying these waves, scientists can learn what lies beneath the surface.
Marsquakes generate different types of seismic waves, including P-waves and S-waves. P-waves move faster and can travel through both solid and liquid materials, while S-waves are slower and cannot pass through liquid.
By analyzing how these waves move through the Martian crust, scientists can determine whether certain layers contain solid rock, cracks, or even water.
New Evidence for Liquid Water
Katayama and Akamatsu discovered unusual patterns in the seismic waves recorded by SEIS.
At depths of 10 km and 20 km, they noticed sudden changes in how the waves moved. Previously, these changes were thought to be caused by variations in rock porosity (how much empty space is in the rock) or chemical composition.
However, the new study suggests another possibility—these boundaries might indicate the presence of water-filled cracks in the Martian crust.
To test their idea, the scientists conducted experiments on Earth using a rock similar to Martian crust, called diabase.
They measured how seismic waves passed through dry, wet, and frozen diabase samples. Their findings showed that wet rock had seismic wave speeds similar to those recorded on Mars, supporting the idea that liquid water could be present underground.
What This Means for Life on Mars
If liquid water exists beneath the Martian surface today, it could provide an environment where microbial life might survive. Scientists believe Mars had large amounts of water billions of years ago, but this new evidence suggests that some of it may still be there—hidden beneath the surface.
These findings could change our understanding of Mars and its potential to support life. Future missions could explore these underground water sources, bringing us closer to answering one of the biggest questions in space exploration: Are we alone in the universe?
Source: Geological Society of America.
