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Explanation: Was Mars ever wet enough to support life? To help answer this question, NASA launched two rover missions to the red planet and landed them in regions that satellite images indicated might have been covered with water. Yesterday, mounting evidence was released indicating that the Mars Opportunity rover had indeed uncovered indications that its landing site, Meridiani Planum, was once quite wet. Evidence that liquid water once flowed includes the physical appearance of many rocks, rocks with niches where crystals appear to have grown, and rocks with sulfates. Pictured above, Opportunity looks back on its now empty lander. Visible is some of the light rock outcropping that yielded water indications, as well as the rim of the small crater where Opportunity landed. The rover will continue to explore its surroundings and try to determine the nature and extent that water molded the region.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Mars - Opportunity rover - water
Publications with words: Mars - Opportunity rover - water
See also:
- APOD: 2025 April 13 Б An Unusual Hole in Mars
- APOD: 2025 March 23 Б Ancient Ogunquit Beach on Mars
- SuperCam Target on Maaz
- Full Moon, Full Mars
- APOD: 2025 January 15 Б Wolf Moon Engulfs Mars
- APOD: 2024 December 3 Б Ice Clouds over a Red Planet
- APOD: 2024 November 10 Б Valles Marineris: The Grand Canyon of Mars