Thursday, March 4, 2010

More About Water

A few decades ago, one limiting factor to humanity's colonization of the Solar System was thought to be a lack of water beyond Earth. We now know that won't be a problem.

There's a significant amount of water on the Moon. Jupiter's moon Europa may have the largest ocean in the Solar System under its icy surface. Saturn's moon Enceladus may be made largely of water.

And then there's Mars. The polar ice caps contain substantial amounts of water. We know from some of the probes orbiting Mars, as well as from the Phoenix Mars Lander, that water ice is present just under the surface over extensive areas. Now, in new data from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, there's confirmation that glaciers, with ice miles thick, lie under the surface, likely dotting Mars.

So, if humanity ever ventures in earnest beyond Earth, there will be challenges to be overcome, but running out of water should not be one of them.

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