Researchers have discovered on Mars extensive ice reserves, emerging on the surface of the planet. The structure of the ice will make it possible to study the history of the Martian climate.
Mars has significant ice reserves. The most notable of these are polar caps, located around the poles of the planet. In the middle latitudes of the planet there are deposits of ice, but previously it was believed that they do not reach the surface - due to low atmospheric pressure melting water quickly evaporates.
The authors of the new work came to the conclusion that in the middle latitudes ice can also look out from under the solid surface of the planet. This conclusion is based on the results of observations of the automatic interplanetary station Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO). Scientists have discovered eight places in the middle latitudes.
The participants suggested that these fragments are associated with large subsurface deposits of water ice. Judging by the appreciable layers and veins in the ice of the cliffs, this ice created abundant snowfalls.