It’s no secret that beneath the surface of the rocky and dusty surface of Mars, there are water bodies that are still unknown. But not anymore, as the latest discovery on the red planet claims a ‘significant’ amount of water to be hidden under the Grand Canyon. According to the recently released statement by the European Space Agency (ESA), nearly forty percent of the materials found near Valles Marineris are reported to be water molecules.

The project dubbed as ExoMars that explored water molecules surrounding the grand canyon is being carried out by ESA, in collaboration with Roscosmos. The large volume of water was detected by an Orbiter (Trace Gas), which has been designed to survey Mar’s landscape. Meanwhile, talking about the discovery, Space Research Institute’s lead investigator, Igor Mitrofanov said, “FREND revealed an area with an unusually large amount of hydrogen in the colossal Valles Marineris canyon system: assuming the hydrogen we see is bound into water molecules, as much as 40% of the near-surface material in this region appears to be water.”

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While water is known to exists on Mars surface, but the volume wasn’t explored weren’t as ‘significant’ as found recently. And the latest update about the abundance of water in the Valles Marineris region could help astronauts plan further investigations on the red planet.

“I’ve spotted hidden #water – either ice or water-rich minerals in Mars Grand Canyon! The reservoir is large, not too deep below ground, & could be easily exploitable for future explorers,” ExoMars tweeted.

Breaking news: I’ve spotted hidden #water – either ice or water-rich minerals 🤔 – in #Mars’ Grand Canyon! ❄️💧🔴

The reservoir is large, not too deep below ground, & could be easily exploitable for future explorers 🤩

Read on: https://t.co/lIAEuz2tNW#ExploreFarther #ExoMars pic.twitter.com/j1jwSCJebq

— ExoMars orbiter (@ESA_TGO) December 15, 2021

Meanwhile, according to ESA, the size of the Grand Canyon with abundance of water is reported to be about the size of Netherlands. While the latest discovery left many scientists baffled, its form in which the water exists is still not confirmed. The press release shared by ESA also mentions that the water could be in the form of ice or water or a chemical combination of other soil minerals.

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Cover Image: ESA Twitter