Mars was once covered by a massive ocean, NASA scientists say

Mars once had a huge ocean
(Image credit: NASA/YouTube)

About 4.3 billion years ago, up to 20 percent of Mars was covered by an ocean that reached about a mile in depth, according to scientists from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. The polar ice caps today contain the 13 percent of that ocean that didn't evaporate into space when Mars' atmosphere largely disappeared.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
Explore More
Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.