Ice Mounds Abound in Martian Craters

An analysis of the thickness and the shapes of the ice mounds in Martian craters found that the patterns matched Mars’ axial tilt and precession.

IMAGE: Layered ice in Burroughs crater on Mars, with imagery from THEMIS (left) and HiRISE (right panels). The ice layers here record climate oscillations now linked precisely to changes in Mars’ orbit and tilt, according to a new study in the AGU journal Geophysical Research Letters. CREDIT: Sori et al./Geophysical Research Letters

Researchers recently discovered deposits of layered ice in craters in Mars’ southern hemisphere. These deposits gave the team insights into the past orientation…