Tech Desk 
Nov 08, 2024
In an era where mysteries involving the existence of extraterrestrial life remain unsolved, a Chinese rover has spotted traces of dried-up oceans on Mars.
While being evidence of Mars housing long-stretching oceans, the discovery also involved signs of some ancient coastline where water is likely to have gushed back and forth, a study said on Thursday.
It's been debated for decades between scientists that an ocean was as big as a third of the Red Planet billions of years ago, and the latest exploration was held in scepticism by one researcher.
Ancient oceans found on Mars
Signs of ancient oceans on Mars were also found when China's Zhurong rover landed on a plain in the Martian northern hemisphere's Utopia region in 2021.
The rover has since been assessing the red surface, emerging on the scene with recent findings as part of a new study published in the journal Nature.
According to the Express Tribune, lead study author Bo Wu of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University said numerous features hinting at a former ocean were sighted around Zhurong's landing area, including "pitted cones, polygonal troughs and etched flows".
Earlier research highlighted that the crater-like pitted cones might have formed from mud volcanoes since they often take on shapes in areas marked by the former existence of water or ice.
The presence of a shoreline near the aforementioned area was also validated by information from the rover and satellite data and analysis back on Earth, noted the study.
