MRO provides insights about Martian Water

This article highlights the quest of the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO), which is currently examining several geological features to search for clues in understanding the role water has played throughout Martian history.
The search included two gullies that were explored to inspect material deposited within the past 8 years, the polar ice layers, and signs of water release as a result of large impacts in distant Martian history. The deposited material in the gullies was determined not to be the result of liquid water flow, but dry landslides. These findings will be published in the next issue of the journal Science. It had been previously thought that the deposits in the gullies could indicate the presence of liquid water on Mars in present time. The new evidence provided by MRO has proved this is most likely not the case.
Other gullies on Mars provide more hope. Strong evidence of liquid water flow on Mars in recent times (millions of years) indicates cyclical climate change. Similar to Earth, Mars experiences periodic flux within the climate due to the tilt and orbit of the planet. In some gullies, there are shallow slopes that are not steep enough to create dry landslides. Images from the cameras of MRO show strong evidence of liquid water flow.
Landscapes with braided channels and delta-like deposits have also been identified with the cameras of MRO. This highlights the possibility that Mars once had a wet climate on a continual basis at one point. There is close association between these features and impact craters. This supports the hypothesis that the presence of water on Mars is episodic. These drainage networks could be the result of material melted by the impact of a large object into an ice-rich Martian crust.
The search for water continues…