NASA Announces the Discovery of Liquid Water on Mars

In a press conference Monday, NASA announced the discovery of liquid water on the surface of Mars.

Astronomers have theorized about the possibility of water on Mars ever since the more powerful telescopes of the European Renaissance allowed them to view the planet’s polar ice caps for the first time. Now, hundreds of years later, NASA will announce that “strong evidence” shows Mars does indeed have liquid water that flows from the planet’s mountains seasonally.

There are still no images of water on Mars (which would evaporate extremely quickly). But NASA came to the conclusion after looking at images showing dark streaks running down Martian mountaintops which only appear when conditions are ideal for liquid water to form.

The discovery comes a year after NASA announced they would search for any indication that life once existed on the Red Planet. Water is generally seen as one of the most essential prerequisties for extraterrestrial life, but NASA isn’t going that far yet.

[Image via Shutterstock]
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