In an exciting discovery, which could influence future studies, scientists have discovered what appears to be the oldest direct evidence of hot water flow on Mars in its ancient past. The recent discovery suggests that despite its arid and dry landscape today, the Red Planet may have been capable of supporting life during its distant history.

The presence of water comes from a well-known Martian meteorite, NWA7034, found in the Sahara Desert in 2011. Due to its dark, polished surface, this meteorite is commonly referred to as “Black Beauty.”

About 2 billion years old, Black Beauty is the second oldest Martian meteorite ever discovered.

A team from Curtin University has discovered something even older: a 4.45 billion-year-old zircon grain that contains traces of water-rich fluids. Aaron Cavosie, a Curtin team member from the School of Earth and Planetary Sciences, believes this breakthrough will provide new insights into hydrothermal systems linked to volcanic magma activity on Mars.

“We used nanoscale geochemistry to identify elementary traces of hot water on Mars dating back to 4.45 billion years ago,” Cavosie said. “Hydrothermal systems played a critical role in the emergence of life on Earth, and our findings suggest that Mars also had water – an essential ingredient for habitability – early in its crust formation.”

The team identified key elements – iron, aluminum, yttrium and sodium – in the zircon grain using nanoscale imaging and spectroscopy, which reveal the chemical composition of the materials. These elements were incorporated into zircon as it formed, indicating the presence of water early in Mars’ magmatic activity.

Water on the red planet

Scientists estimate that liquid water was abundant on the Red Planet around 4.1 billion years ago, as evidence of ancient river beds and lakes has been discovered on Mars. However, this new discovery suggests that water could have existed even earlier. During the Noachian period of Mars, the Martian surface was heavily bombarded by asteroids.

The first evidence of water on Mars was discovered in the 1970s, when NASA’s Mariner 9 space probe captured images of river valleys on the surface of Mars. Later missions, including Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Express, discovered many hydrated clay minerals, which require water to form.

Most evidence for water on Mars comes from materials and terrain more than 3 billion years old. After this period, there is little evidence of stable liquid water on the planet’s surface.

Scientists believe Mars lost its water billions of years ago, when its atmosphere was destroyed by intense solar radiation from the Sun. Without an atmosphere to protect it, water vapor escaped into space, causing the planet to dry out.

It is unknown whether surface waters remained stable during this period, but it remains a possibility. However, one thing is certain: the crust of Mars, like the water contained on Earth shortly after its formation, is an essential factor in maintaining habitability.