China’s Mars rover Zhurong finds possible shoreline of ancient Red Planet ocean

Happy Martian New Year! Today marks the start of a new year on the Red Planet, the 38th since humans began counting in 1956.

The Martian new year begins with data from a now-defunct rover spotting what appears to be an ancient shoreline streaking through Mars‘ northern hemisphere. Scientists studying data sent home by China’s Zhurong rover say the findings offer fresh support to the decades-old hypothesis that an ancient ocean covered the Martian north billions of years ago.

Since Zhurong landed in 2021 — in one of the largest and oldest impact basins on Mars, known as Utopia Planitia — the rover has traveled about 1.24 miles (2 kilometers) studying the geology of its surroundings in search of signs of water or ice.

About Utopia Planitia:

Utopia Planitia is a vast plain located in the northern hemisphere of Mars, within the largest known impact basin in the Solar System, called the Utopia Basin. The region has attracted significant scientific interest due to its unique geography and potential insights into Mars’s climate history, geology, and even the possibility of water or ice reservoirs below its surface.

Key Characteristics of Utopia Planitia

1. Size and Location: Utopia Planitia spans approximately 3,300 kilometers across and is situated between 25° to 50° North latitude. It is one of the largest plains on Mars and covers a massive portion of the planet’s surface.
2. Geological Features: The region is covered with flat plains, ridges, and pitted terrains that suggest a history of glacial activity. There are also signs of periglacial (cold-climate) processes, which may indicate the presence of subsurface ice.
3. Water and Ice: Observations from Mars orbiters, especially data from radar instruments on NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO), have suggested that a large volume of water ice is buried just below the surface of Utopia Planitia. This discovery has raised the possibility that it could serve as a future resource for human missions, potentially providing water and even fuel through hydrogen extraction.
4. Climate History: Utopia Planitia’s geological features hint at a varied climate history, potentially including past periods when liquid water was more common. The region’s ground patterns and textures, which resemble ice-rich permafrost landscapes on Earth, suggest cycles of freezing and thawing over time.

Exploration of Utopia Planitia

• NASA’s Viking 2 Mission: Viking 2 was the first mission to explore Utopia Planitia, landing there in 1976. It provided valuable data on the Martian surface, capturing images of the rocky and dusty landscape and analyzing soil samples.
• China’s Tianwen-1 Mission: In 2021, China’s Tianwen-1 mission successfully landed the Zhurong rover in Utopia Planitia. The rover has been exploring the region to study its surface composition, climate, and any signs of water activity. The mission aims to better understand the plain’s geology and history of water.

Importance of Utopia Planitia

1. Resource Potential: The potential ice deposits could be invaluable for future Mars exploration missions, providing a local source of water for drinking, crop growth, and fuel production.
2. Understanding Mars’s Climate Evolution: Studying the geological features of Utopia Planitia could help scientists learn more about Mars’s ancient climate and hydrology, especially regarding the stability and distribution of water ice over time.
3. Possibility of Life: While no direct evidence of life has been found, the presence of subsurface ice raises intriguing questions about whether microbial life could have ever existed, or still exists, within protected ice layers.

Utopia Planitia continues to be a major focus for Martian exploration, providing essential insights into the planet’s geology, history, and potential habitability.