NASA used an imager aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Oribter to spot light waves returning from seasonal dark streaks on the surface. It is believed that this event had triggered hopes of finding water on Mars a while back.
A much more closer and investigative study revealed that streaks absorb light at certain wave lengths in relation to chemicals which can pull water from Mars’ atmosphere. The process that takes place is called deliquescence.
This chemical allows water to remain water at lower temperatures. At the same time, it keeps them form boiling off in the thin Martian atmosphere. In photos released by NASA, the entire science of discovery of water on Mars can be spotted.
Water is a pre-requisite for life and NASA’s attempts at searching for water on other planetary objects has received a major push in recent years. The search for life beyond Earth is the one that has been making headlines and fueling conspiracies for decades now.
As a salty brine flows somewhere across ancient Mars, we can keep our hopes alive for our first neighbor in that big deserted space out there.
(Featured Image Credit: independent.co.uk)