Episode 15: A Salty Lake on Mars

Stop me if you've heard this one before: astronomers announced in July that they'd found water on Mars.

No, seriously. I know they've said something that sounds like that before, but this is different — this is *liquid* water. Probably.

See, previously they'd found solid ice, and then found evidence for liquid water billions of years in the past, and then signs that sometimes a little bit of water runs across the surface in the Martian summer before evaporating away. But *this* time, astronomers reckon they've spotted a lake of briny water down under the surface. Which is exciting — so, could it mean life?! Hmmmm.

SHOW NOTES

Syzygy is produced by Chris Stewart and co-hosted by Dr Emily Brunsden from the Department of Physics at the University of York.

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Emily at the University of York: www.york.ac.uk/physics/people/brunsden/

Chris online: kipstewart.com

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Some of the things we talk about in this episode: