Proof of water for future explorers: New images from NASA show “underground ice cliffs” on Mars

Natural News: It has been known for quite some time now that Mars is full of water. Regardless of whether or not there is actually flowing water on the so-called red planet’s surface, scientists from the National Aeronautics Space Agency (NASA) have long confirmed that water is indeed present on the planet. Most of it is in the form of ice, and now in a new paper, it has been revealed that there are potentially massive “underground ice cliffs” lying deep beneath the planet’s surface.

The discovery of these ice cliffs has now triggered widespread speculation about what it could mean for the future of Mars exploration. According to one expert who worked on the paper that details the discovery, it could lead to great new leaps in research regarding the search for life on the neighboring planet.

According to Shane Byrne, an assistant professor from the University of Arizona Lunar and Planetary Laboratory and co-author on the study, the water that can be extracted from the ice cliffs that were only just discovered could lead to a steady source of water for the humans that would eventually explore Mars.

“Humans need water wherever they go, and it’s very heavy to carry with you,” said Byrne. “Previous ideas for extracting human-usable water from Mars were to pull it from the very dry atmosphere or to break down water-containing rocks. Here we have what we think is almost pure ice water buried just below the surface.”

The next step that needs to be done is essentially to just collect the water from under the Martian planet’s surface. And based on the composition as well as the location of the water ice cliffs on Mars, one could very well do it with nothing more than just a shovel and a bucket....read more>>>...