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Science

Pungent gas over Mars fissures hints the planet is still volcanically active

The ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter detected hydrogen chloride — a common volcanic gas on Earth — above the Alba Mons region.

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The brief

  • ■Hydrogen chloride detected in the low atmosphere over ancient fissures
  • ■Suggests ongoing volcanism beneath the surface
  • ■Raises the odds of subsurface conditions suitable for microbial life

Why it matters

An actively warm Mars means liquid water could exist underground — the single best place to look for life beyond Earth.

An orbiting atmospheric research spacecraft has detected hydrogen chloride, a pungent gas commonly released by volcanoes on Earth, above surface fissures along the massive ancient volcano Alba Mons on Mars.

Researchers said the finding, from the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, suggests Earth's planetary neighbor is still volcanically active rather than geologically dead as long assumed.

The discovery has direct implications for the search for life: volcanic heat below the surface could keep water liquid and create conditions where microbes could survive.

Sources

  • Reuters

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