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Enormous Amount of Frozen Water Found on Mars

schweini writes "Space.com is reporting that the Mars Express probe's MARSIS (Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionospheric Sounding) experiment has detected and measured an enormous amount of water ice near Mars' south pole, which would be sufficient to submerge the whole planet's surface underneath approximately 10m of water on average."

10 of 442 comments (clear)

  1. We're the ocean planet by nut · · Score: 4, Informative

    Facts about the Oceans:

    Area: about 140 million square miles (362 million sq km), ore nearly 71% of the Earth's surface.

    Average Depth: 12,200 feet (3,720 m).

    http://www.mos.org/oceans/planet/features.html

    --
    Never trust a man in a blue trench coat, Never drive a car when you're dead
  2. Liquid water by Rix · · Score: 4, Informative

    They've been looking for signs of liquid water, primarily in the distant past.

  3. Re:The depth figure doesn't make sense... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    estimated volume of ice found = surface area of Mars x 36 feet

  4. This is spooky by Mr.+Protocol · · Score: 2, Informative

    One of the most gorgeous anime series ever made, "Aria" (two seasons, "Aria the Animation" and "Aria the Natural"), was based on exactly this concept: we terraformed Mars and overshot. It's now a water planet, whose name has been changed to Aqua. An ocean planet of island chains, each set of islands was colonized by a different culture. The animation is set in the city of Neo-Venezia, the original having sunk under the ocean of Earth ("Manhome") long before.

    This story really startled me, because now it's actually sounding possible.

    The year is 2303, and tourists are gliding in gondolas along the canals of Neo-Venezia, in the care of the undines...

  5. Re:Not by Chatsubo · · Score: 4, Informative

    TFA states that there's that amount of water in one deposit.

    There's probably other deposits, with much, much more....

    "There's evidence that about 10 times or maybe even 100 times that much water has flowed across the surface of Mars to carve the various channels, the outflow valleys and other features we see in the images and topography data"

    They're just saying that, they've found where a bunch of that water IS, but they still have to find where the rest of it is. If it's there.

    --
    > no, yes, maybe (tagging beta)
  6. A Blue Mars Map by gobbo · · Score: 4, Informative

    I also found it an odd measure. I'd much rather see an image of where the lakes/oceans might be if all of it was melted, perhaps with depth maps.

    It's one of those statements meant to boggle, like "if you stacked all the books ever printed, they would reach the moon" [that's bunk, just made that up].

    Anyway, you asked for a sea level map of Mars, so here ya go.

  7. Re:Of course you know what this means... by ezzzD55J · · Score: 2, Informative

    intelligencia ITYM intelligentsia ;-)
  8. Re:oh? by timster · · Score: 2, Informative

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Van_Allen_belts

    Due to its lack of a magnetic field, the solar wind pushes gases off Mars, resulting in an atmosphere which is much thinner than it would be otherwise.

    http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2001/ast31jan_1 .htm

    --
    I have seen the future, and it is inconvenient.
  9. Re:It's as if... by N3wsByt3 · · Score: 2, Informative

    "(e.g. 'Witches' is best interpreted as potion-makers in the Old Testament, homosexuality is usually referred to in regard to rampant sex without regard, which was particularly dangerous in the age before real medicine,[....]"

    So, basically, you interpret the bible like you see fit.

    That's all fine and good, but if it's up to any individual to interpret it the way it fits him/her, then people who believe 'witches refer to more then potionmakers' and 'homosexuality is about same-sex sexual behaviour' have as much validity then your interpretation of the matter.

    --
    --- "To pee or not to pee, that is the question." ---
  10. Re:Just wait.. by KKlaus · · Score: 2, Informative

    More massive even too. Does something in (near) permanent orbit "weigh" anything?

    --
    Relax I just want some peanuts.