Landslides on Mars suggest water once surrounded Olympus Mons, tallest volcano

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28-08-2023, 20:00

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INA - BAGHDAD

The case for Martian volcanoes soaring above ancient, vanished oceans keeps getting stronger.

Researchers analyzing images of Mars' Olympus Mons, the tallest volcano in our solar system, say a wrinkled patch of land near the mountain's northern region likely formed when blisteringly hot lava oozed out of the summit millions of years ago. That lava is thought to have run into ice and water at the mountain's base, resulting in landslides. At least a few of these landslides must have stretched about 621 miles (1000 km) from the volcano and wrinkled as they hardened across eons, scientists say.

While such streaked features on Mars have been long-studied, however, the role of water in their formation has remained an open question. The new findings add evidence to the prevailing theory that liquid water once flowed freely on the Red Planet, which is now a frigid desert world except for remnant ice largely locked within its poles.