In recent years, scientists have reported seeing evidence that water and even large bodies of water once existed on Mars. But that evidence indicated that water existed a few billion years ago.
Now, they’re confident that there’s water on the Red Planet now, specifically salt water.
“I think we’re opening a new chapter of a book and trying to understand what this really means," said Noureddine Melikechi, dean of Delaware State University's College of Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Technology.
Noureddine Melikechi runs the optics science center at Delaware State University, where he develops laser technology for a high resolution camera aboard the Mars Curiosity rover called the Chem Cam. This camera shoots lasers at different objects in the Martian terrain in hopes of finding water molecules and other ingredients for life.
The saltwater discovery this week used the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, a satellite that also takes photos of the Martian landscape. From those images the scientists focused on dark streaks that appeared along craters and canyons.
Scientists call them recurrent slope lineae or SLR’s for short -- and analyzing this led to discovery of brines flowing on Mars.
The difference between the Orbiter and the Curiosity is not just that they’re taking photos in different locations, but also on different scales.
“The Orbiter looks at much larger structures and features, unlike the ChemCam that looks at the micron and millimeter level," said Melikechi.
But now that scientists have located water on Mars, a rover with a high resolution camera will be needed to take a closer look at these markings.
“We can look at dust and we can see if dust hydrated or not," said Melikechi. "We can also dig a little with the laser and look inside rocks which the Mars Orbiter cannot. Those rocks have veins that are really narrow. So you would not be able to see it with a camera that’s really far, far away, but with ChemCam you can and you can see what the rock is made of.”
Scientists like Melikechi are still processing what the presence of salt water means for their research, but certainly, it adds more momentum for the Mars Mission in 2020 to continue the search for potential life on Mars.
