Water Under the Surface

Work done by University of Guelph researchers have found evidence for large reservoirs of water on the Martian surface. The water they found is not in liquid form, but rather a chemically bound white layer of mineral salts. It was found under the planet's red surface only a penny thick. It is made up of as much as 18% of water by weight as well as iron and sulphur. Earth has water that is often part of minerals that contain sulphates. It was found not only in the Columbia Hills that the rover has been exploring but it was a common thing in the area.

It was left from surface water pools that evaporated. If there is a possibility of taking the water out of the surface, it would help the problem of colonizing Mars. There will be a Science Lab sent to Mars in three years to confirm this existance of water.

When the Spirit's wheels locked up in the surface of the planet, it had sent up this while underlying layer. It has since then been found to contain water.