NASA finds traces of lake on Mars

NASA's Perseverance rover has uncovered data confirming the existence of ancient lake deposits formed by water that once filled a vast basin in the Jezero Crater. Scientists from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and the University of Oslo made this discovery, and the study has been published in the journal Science Advances, as reported by Reuters.

The rover conducted a soil survey using the RIMFAX radar, providing scientists with a two-dimensional image of a 20-meter-deep section of the surface. The identified rock layers unequivocally indicate that soil deposits, transported by water, accumulated in the Jezero Crater thanks to a river that fed it.

This research confirms earlier conclusions drawn from orbital imagery and other data, allowing scientists to speculate that certain regions of Mars were once covered by water with microbial life. The currently lifeless and arid planet was formerly warm, humid, and conducive to life.

Scientists anticipate studying the samples collected by the rover in greater detail. Researchers believe that these deposits formed approximately 3 billion years ago.

The first human landing on Mars could occur as early as 2040, according to NASA Administrator Bill Nelson's forecast. He noted that a trip to the Moon takes a few days, but a journey to Mars would take seven to eight years. SpaceX founder Elon Musk believes that a Mars landing could happen within the next decade. Previously, he promised that the first cargo mission to the planet would depart in 2022, and by 2050, a city with a population of 1 million people would be established there.