Mars Express Images Point to a Frozen Sea Buried Near the Equator

Images from Europe's Mars Express orbiter, highlighted by New Scientist, show surface formations near the Martian equator that a British-led research team believes may mark a buried frozen sea of pack ice.

The team, led by John Murray of Britain's Open University, identified plate-like structures resembling sea-ice features found near Earth's poles. They estimate the potential subsurface body spans roughly 800 by 900 kilometers and averages 45 meters in depth.

The plates are thought to be around 5 million years old. Because the equatorial location receives enough sunlight to melt exposed ice, the team proposes that a thin volcanic ash layer, perhaps a few centimeters thick, has acted as insulation and preserved the ice beneath.

Michael Carr of the US Geological Survey described the scenario as "fairly plausible." The findings were scheduled for presentation at the first Mars Express science conference in Noordwijk, the Netherlands.

Brian Hynek of the University of Colorado said the site would rank as a leading candidate for any future mission searching for signs of life on Mars, provided the hypothesis holds up.

Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this AFP wire report, first published in February 2005, in its own words.