Polar Subsurface “Lakes” May Not Be Water After All

A new analysis of MARSIS data from ESA’s Mars Express is processed using an alternative technique from a previous study and reveals that a bright reflection seem under Mars’ south pole may not be liquid water.

IMAGE: Examples of radar slice images of the Martian south polar region from Mars Express and the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. CREDIT: NASA/ESA/JPL- Caltech/University of Rome/Washington University in St. Louis

We talk a lot about water on Mars in the planetary science community. It’s an important topic. With plans underway to send humans to the red planet, scientists and…