Mars Underground: Digging Deep for Life

It's said that there may be life on Mars, not on the surface but underneath in pockets of frozen water. Scientists plan to engage this theory by looking underneath the surface of earth, hoping to create a similar environment on Mars. So far NASA is teaming up with the Spanish Center of Astrobiology in the project MARTE (Mars Analog Research and Technology Experiment), where they use self sustaining robots capable of digging deep into Mars' surface and hopefully retrieve samples of Martian life. The starting location is said to be Rio Tinto, a river found on Mars. Scientists say the reddish tint is caused by highly acidic water containing dissolved iron. This acidic water is said to be maintained by microbial life eating sulfide minerals and producing sulfuric acid as a by product. Along with digging into the surface of mars and examining Rio Tinto, they also plan on searching caves due to the rich environment it usually provides for microbes.
http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/mars_caves_030905.html