Concealed Glaciers Discovered On Mars At Mid-latitudes
www.sciencedaily.com
 ScienceDaily (Nov. 21, 2008) — Vast Martian glaciers of water ice under protective blankets of rocky debris persist today at much lower
latitudes than any ice previously identified on Mars, says new research using ground-penetrating radar on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.
Because water is one of the primary requirements for life as we know it, finding large new reservoirs of frozen water on Mars is an encouraging sign
for scientists searching for life beyond Earth.
The concealed glaciers extend for tens of miles from edges of mountains or cliffs and are up to one-half mile thick. A layer of rocky debris covering
the ice may have preserved the glaciers as remnants from an ice sheet covering middle latitudes during a past ice age.
"Altogether, these glaciers almost certainly represent the largest reservoir of water ice on Mars that's not in the polar caps. Just one of the
features we examined is three times larger than the city of Los Angeles, and up to one-half-mile thick, and there are many more," said John W. Holt of
The University of Texas at Austin's Jackson School of Geosciences, lead author of a report on the radar observations in the Nov. 21 issue of the
journal Science.
"In addition to their scientific value, they could be a source of water to support future exploration of Mars," said Holt. (visit the link for
the full news article)
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At least here on earth glaciers need to be fed as it were with new snowfall and I would think with the very thin air and low gravity that would be
also true on Mars or the water stored up in the ice would slowly evaporate and dissipate.
So the question becomes where is the water coming from to make the glaciers? Are they nothing more than static blocks of ice or are they dynamic
living glaciers?
It's looking more and more likely that if there is life on Mars its below ground.
www.sciencedaily.com
(visit the link for the full news article)
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Well I tend to lean towards nothing more than static blocks of ice because it probably doesn't get hot enough for the ice to melt, plus that layer
of rocky debris covering the ice most likely preserved the glaciers by shielding it from solar radiation.
I agree, if life exists then it would more than likely be underground.
Makes you wonder where this life(if it exists) is getting it's food supply from. Surely it requires some heat, what's stopping it from freezing
solid?
Interesting article 
P.s, good luck with your knee replacement..
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reply to post by styxxz
Well the interesting thing about glaciers is that if these are a half mile thick then the sheer pressure of them will make the bottom of them warmer
than the surface... the question is, is it enough for the ice at the bottom melt? And if so is it cyclic because if it is vibrant then that increases
the chances of some form of life.
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