A complex geological system of about 1,400 kilometers made up of isolated hills, cliffs and small basins could hold large amounts of water ice.
According to the European Space Agency (ESA) , the studies carried out from the data provided by different probes, such as NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, or ESA's Mars Express, indicate that the area was covered by large glaciers hundreds of millions of years ago.
The accumulation of rock debris around many elevations seems to show it. In fact, something similar happens on Earth. However, those same investigations suggest that much of that ice is still there today, perhaps only 20 meters below the surface.
Apparently, the polar axis of the red planet has undergone considerable changes over time, which in turn has caused profound climatic changes. One consequence of this is the appearance of glaciers in what are now mid-latitudes, such as this region, which dominate the Phlegra Mountains, originated more than 3.6 billion years ago due to the action of tectonic forces.
Photo: ESA
