Ice Cliffs Discovered on Mars

Erosion on Mars has uncovered large, steep cross-sections of clean, subterranean ice. In this false-color image captured by NASA's HiRISE camera, one of eight recently discovered stripes appears dark blue against the Martian terrain.NASA/JPL/UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA/USGS
Erosion on Mars has uncovered large, steep cross-sections of clean, subterranean ice. In this false-color image captured by NASA's HiRISE camera, one of eight recently discovered stripes appears dark blue against the Martian terrain.NASA/JPL/UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA/USGS
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Ice Cliffs Discovered on Mars

Erosion on Mars has uncovered large, steep cross-sections of clean, subterranean ice. In this false-color image captured by NASA's HiRISE camera, one of eight recently discovered stripes appears dark blue against the Martian terrain.NASA/JPL/UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA/USGS
Erosion on Mars has uncovered large, steep cross-sections of clean, subterranean ice. In this false-color image captured by NASA's HiRISE camera, one of eight recently discovered stripes appears dark blue against the Martian terrain.NASA/JPL/UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA/USGS

Locked beneath the surface of Mars are vast quantities of water ice, a new research has found.

In this week's issue of Science, researchers led by USGS planetary geologist Colin Dundas present detailed observations of eight Martian regions where erosion has uncovered large, steep cross-sections of underlying ice.

“What’s new and exciting here is that these ice sheets start quite shallowly,” says planetary scientist Colin Dundas of the US Geological Survey in Flagstaff, Ariz. That could be good news for future astronauts hoping to use that water to drink, or to create oxygen to breathe or make fuel for returning spacecraft.

It’s not just the volume of water they found, it’s how mineable it promises to be. The deposits begin at depths as shallow as one meter and extend upwards of 100 meters into the planet. The researchers don't estimate the quantity of ice present, but they do note that the amount of ice near the surface is likely more extensive than the few locations where it's exposed. And what's more, the ice looks pretty damn pure.

NASA calls the use of space-based resources “in-situ resource utilization,” and the agency thinks it will be essential to survival in deep space. Of particular interest to ISRU planners is the depth of the ice, and the ratio of pure ice to that mixed in with bits of Mars regolith. The more pristine the ice, and the closer it is to the surface, the less energy it takes to extract and use.

The ice found this time isn’t crystal clear. Over years, observations showed that the ice is slowly surrendering water to the atmosphere through a process called sublimation, and signs suggest that boulders and sediment are dislodging from the ice as it recedes. But some debris is to be expected. Dundas and his colleagues hypothesize that the ice originated as snow, falling in waves over millions of years. Some rocky material probably found its way in, in between snow events—but the surrounding ice, the researchers think, is relatively clean.

"On Mars, when you see something bright, it usually means ice,” says Richard Zurek, chief scientist for the Mars Program Office at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, who was unaffiliated with the study. Most of the material on Mars reflects little light, "but the albedo readings on these exposed sections show that this is very bright stuff," he says. "And the spectrometer readings support that this is water ice and not ice-cemented soil, which would be much harder to convert into water as a resource."

The cliffs are all found at latitudes about 55° north or south, however, which grow frigid and dark in the Martian winter—unpromising latitudes for a solar-powered human base. For this reason, the NASA study was limited to sites to within 50° of the equator. Now, Hubbard wants NASA’s human exploration program to look for similar cliffs closer to the equator. “What’s the cutoff point?” he asks. He hopes the next surprise will be ice closer to the Martian tropics.



Fires Engulf Türkiye’s Mediterranean Coast as Government Declares 2 Disaster Zones

People stand next to smoke rising from the wildfire in the Aksu district of Antalya, a Mediterranean city in southern Türkiye, July 25, 2025. (Reuters)
People stand next to smoke rising from the wildfire in the Aksu district of Antalya, a Mediterranean city in southern Türkiye, July 25, 2025. (Reuters)
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Fires Engulf Türkiye’s Mediterranean Coast as Government Declares 2 Disaster Zones

People stand next to smoke rising from the wildfire in the Aksu district of Antalya, a Mediterranean city in southern Türkiye, July 25, 2025. (Reuters)
People stand next to smoke rising from the wildfire in the Aksu district of Antalya, a Mediterranean city in southern Türkiye, July 25, 2025. (Reuters)

New wildfires broke out on Türkiye’s Mediterranean coast Friday, as the government declared two western provinces in the country to be disaster zones.

Images showed flames and smoke billowing into the sky close to high-rise apartment buildings in Antalya, where local and foreign visitors flock during the summer months.

Homes were evacuated in the city center and the outlying district of Aksu as the fire advanced, privately owned news agency DHA reported. Firefighters struggled to extinguish the blazes before strong winds could spread the fire, which closed a major coastal road.

Further along the coast, homes in the city of Manavgat were also threatened.

Local residents with hoses and buckets rushed to assist firefighters as water-dropping helicopters and planes also battled the flames. Police water cannons and municipal water trucks were also enlisted in the firefighting efforts.

Antalya Gov. Hulusi Sahin said that the fires were under control apart from one in Aksu, which was "showing a tendency to grow," and another in Gazipasa, east of Manavgat.

"The fires were truly disturbing and dangerous, because they occurred in city centers, among houses," he said. "We evacuated some of our homes ... There are no deaths or injuries."

At 46.1C (115F), July temperatures in Antalya city were the highest for the month since records began in 1930.

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, meanwhile, said Friday that Izmir and Bilecik provinces had been declared "disaster areas affecting public life," one step below the most serious level of emergency.

Between June 27 and Thursday, residents from 120 neighborhoods nationwide were evacuated, Yerlikaya added, and more than 12,000 workers under the ministry’s authority, such as police and rescue staff, had fought the fires.

In a social media post, the minister said 311 homes had been destroyed or seriously damaged during the monthlong blazes and 85 temporary housing units were set up across three western provinces for those made homeless.

Speaking after Friday prayers, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Türkiye was "faced with a truly great disaster." He said that 25,000 personnel were fighting fires across the country, assisted by 27 planes, 105 helicopters and 6,000 ground vehicles.

Türkiye has faced widespread outbreaks of forest fires since late June. Thirteen people have died, including 10 rescue volunteers and forestry workers killed Wednesday in a fire in Eskisehir, western Türkiye. The funerals for the 10 were on Thursday.

Temperatures above seasonal norms have been exacerbated by strong winds and dry conditions, resulting in dozens of wildfires.

East of Antalya, fires broke out in Adana and Mersin on Friday. Elsewhere in the country, firefighters continued battling blazes in Eskisehir and nearby Karabuk that have been raging for several days.

Albania battles fires

The heat wave in the eastern Mediterranean region saw 1,000 firefighters and soldiers battle flames in Albania as temperatures reached 42 C (107 F).

In the Albanian city of Elbasan, firefighters have been combating a weeklong blaze in the country’s central mountain forests. Fires have also broke out near the southern border with Greece.

Cyprus aftermath

In the aftermath of one of Cyprus’ worst wildfires in living memory, it wasn’t lost on Cypriot officials that climate change may have been a significant contributing factor to the pace and ferocity of the flames.

Both government spokesman Constantinos Letymbiotis and Fire Chief Nicos Longinos referred to the arid conditions, with temperatures hitting 44 C (111 F) and very strong winds that quickly overwhelmed fire crews.

Even 14 firefighting aircraft couldn’t douse the multiple, fast-moving fire fronts quickly enough.

Cyprus is in its third year of minimal winter rains on which it relies for drinking water and for agricultural purposes, even as the government is revving up additional desalination projects.

The fire that moved at breakneck speed left two dead, forced the evacuation of 16 communities, scorched dozens of homes and destroyed many orchards and farms.

Quizzed by a reporter about criticisms that the Fire Service didn’t move quickly enough, Longinos was on the verge of tears when he said that he and all his firefighters have taken an oath to "give their lives" if need be to save lives and property.