Mars is not dry!
I once again feel compelled to rant against the shallow ignorance of too many people in both the journalism field as well as academia about the most recent data we now have of Mars. Two articles today once again show this ignorance, assuming blandly that Mars is a dry planet with little water on it anywhere, when orbital data over the past decade has unequivocally shown that — except for its equatorial regions — the planet is covered with a LOT of near-surface ice.
The headlines make this ignorance quite clear:
- University of Chicago: Was Mars doomed to be a desert? Study proposes new explanation
- Space.com: The secret of why Mars grew cold and dry may be locked away in its rocks
In both cases, the articles assume that the data obtained from rovers and landers in the dry Martian tropics applies to the entire planet. It does not. This evidence of a dry planet carries a bias that comes from the decision by the planetary community as well as NASA to send every rover to that dry equatorial region. Only one lander, Phoenix, has ever been successfully dropped far from the Martian equator, and it was purposely sent to a very high latitude, where it proved there was ice present just below the surface.
Orbital data in the past decade from both Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and Mars Express has clearly shown that there is a lot of near surface ice on Mars, as shown by the map above. In the mid-latitudes the terrain is dominated by glaciers, as this is the region where the vast ice sheets in the high latitudes begin to fade away.
Only the equatorial region, indicated by the white lines on the map, is dry and barren. And yet, even here, orbital data has detected evidence that suggests underground ice still exists.
It seems to me that journalists and academic PR departments should know these facts, and include them in any reports about the dry nature of Mars’ equatorial regions.
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That poses the question of why. Why is the data indicating water ice being ignored? Your thoughts, Mr Z.
Typically I would say follow the money. Research grant money? Exploration vehicle grant money?
Steve: I consider two reasons for this: 1. Ignorance. Modern reporters and PR departments and even a lot of Mars scientists are not up-to-date on the larger science context on Mars. They just repeat the old tropes out of habit.
2. Money. As you say, overstating Mars’ dryness makes their story more dramatic, and encourages funding. This is comparable to NASA’s constant lying that Perseverance is searching for life on Mars. It is merely a shallow selling point that sounds good, but is divorced from reality.
I remember JPL announcing they found water on Mars for the fifty-eleventh time hoping for the same level of interest they had during Sojourner in the 1990’s, when about all we had were shuttle, Delta IIs and Dan Goldin…yuck!
We had space fever, but no Elon.
That’s flipped
I’m not saying there is or isn’t, but….
“Only one lander, Phoenix, has ever been successfully dropped far from the Martian equator, and it was purposely sent to a very high latitude, where it proved there was ice present just below the surface.”
From NASA:
“On May 31, the robotic arm scooped up dirt and began sampling Martian soil for ice. By June 19, mission scientists were able to conclude that clumps of bright material in the “DodoGoldilocks” trench dug by the robotic arm were probably water ice – the material had vaporized four days after the scoop.”
Probably Proved.
Map shows why I favor Phelegra Montes area for SpaceX landings. Lots of readily water ice and very visually interesting surrounding topography/scenery. Who wants a Mars settlement in the middle of a flat, uninspiring desert?
https://www.planet.geo.fu-berlin.de/eng/projects/mars/hrsc531-PhlegraMontes.php
Just a casual observer and not a scientist, but I truly believe there is an anti-colonialization bias among many in government and education as well. The environmental movement has such a stranglehold among the upper echelons that the prevailing thought has become “we have already destroyed our planet, we must never allow that to happen to another planet,” neither of which is true.
You broke the code Justin–they want us back in the caves with Alley Oop
Just hope they don’t find oil! Mars programs would be shut down forever…
This new interstellar visitor is to pass near Mars.
There is a probe called the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) in Mars’s orbit.
Might it be able to gradually lift itself like Bereshete such that it can get near this new hyperbolic object?
I’m pretty sure that the Climate Cargo Cult would like better to be describing Mars as a world that was “once like Earth, before the bad stuff started happening like what’s happening on Earth now from burning fossil fuels. Will our beautiful Earth become a hellhole like Venus, or a desert planet like Mars?”
A hypothetical for Steve and Our Host, why is Mars water being ignored?
Momentum. Simple momentum. Same reason that Ivermectin was ignored, eventually actively suppressed. Not only does it conflict with whatever the Accepted Solution at the time is, it challenges whatever the Powers That Be have determined it to be. Demonstrate they are wrong and they are unemployed. Think continental drift or catastrophic changes on Earth in the past. Both were ignored until all the old scientists died off. We are living it once again. Cheers –
agimarc: Yes, I think momentum is also part of the problem. Many scientists have tunnel vision, and are not aware of the larger global picture coming out the orbiters.
Because I am not focused on specific research projects, I look at all the research being done, which gives me a wider perspective.
I shouldn’t however be the only space journalist with this perspective. Yet is seems so.
More on the subject
https://phys.org/news/2025-07-ancient-river-reveal-mars-wetter.html
“The discovery of more than 15,000 kilometers of ancient riverbeds on Mars suggests that the Red Planet may once have been much wetter than previously thought.”