US EditionAncient River Systems Reveal Mars Was Wetter than We Thought
NOACHIS TERRA, MARS, JUL 10 – Researchers mapped over 15,000 km of ancient rain-fed riverbeds revealing a stable wet climate on Mars around 3.7 billion years ago, challenging previous cold, dry models.
- Adam Losekoot shared his latest findings on ancient river channels in Noachis Terra on Mars at a major astronomical conference held in Durham in 2025.
- This research examined elevated, winding landforms formed by ancient waterways—commonly referred to as inverted channels—as alternative indicators of persistent surface water during the Noachian-Hesperian transition approximately 3.7 billion years ago.
- Researchers mapped over 15,000 kilometers of interconnected fluvial sinuous ridges across Noachis Terra, suggesting widespread, long-lived liquid water likely sustained by precipitation.
- Losekoot expressed that their research provides fresh support for the idea that Mars was previously far more dynamic and geologically intricate than it appears today, making the study particularly thrilling to participate in.
- These results contradict prevailing views of Mars as predominantly cold and dry, indicating that Noachis Terra once sustained prolonged episodes of temperate and moist environments, preserving key geological features not commonly found on Earth.
13 Articles
13 Articles
Ancient Rivers in Noachis Terra Reveal Mars' Long-Lived Wet Past
In the last couple of decades, evidence has accumulated showing that ancient Mars was a warm planet with abundant water flowing across its surface. The more scientists study the planet, the more evidence they find. New research examining Mars' Noachis Terra region adds to this evidence, showing that flowing water was once widespread across this less-often studied region.
Scientists uncover 15,000 kilometers of lost rivers on Mars
Mars may not have always been the dry and dusty world we imagine. A staggering network of ancient riverbeds, spanning over 15,000 kilometers, has been discovered in the planet’s Noachis Terra region, suggesting that flowing water, fueled by precipitation, was once widespread. Unlike previously studied valley networks, these “inverted channels” reveal a long history of persistent water activity, challenging the idea that Mars was merely cold and …
Mars was considered a cold, dry planet with few water resources. New evidence could completely turn this theory upside down.
New research suggests that Mars may have been much wetter in its early history than previously thought. Scientists have discovered traces of as much as 10,000 miles (16,000 kilometers) of ancient riverbeds in the planet's southern highlands—in an area previously thought to have no evidence of flowing water.
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