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Where has water ice been found on Mars?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Mars
Mars An especially serene view of Mars (Tharsis side), a composite of images taken by the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft in April 1999. The northern polar cap and encircling dark dune field of Vastitas Borealis are visible at the top of the globe. White water-ice clouds surround the most prominent volcanic peaks, including Olympus Mons near the western limb, Alba Patera to its northeast, and the line of Tharsis volcanoes to the southeast. East of the Tharsis rise can be seen the enormous near-equatorial gash that marks the canyon system Valles Marineris.

Water ice has been identified in several locations on Mars, primarily concentrated in the polar regions and beneath the surface at higher latitudes.12

Polar Regions

Both of Mars's poles feature significant water-ice deposits:
* North Pole: During the northern summer, the seasonal carbon dioxide cap disappears, revealing a residual water-ice cap. The region also contains a stack of water-ice-rich sediments approximately 3 km (2 miles) thick.13
* South Pole: A residual cap composed of both water ice and carbon dioxide ice persists through the summer.13

Subsurface and Mid-Latitudes

Water ice is considered ubiquitous in the Martian subsurface at latitudes poleward of 40°. Key findings include:2
* High Latitudes: At latitudes higher than 60°, ice is present within a meter of the surface. The Phoenix lander confirmed the presence of subsurface water ice at 68° N.12
* Mid-Latitudes: Impact craters in the 40°–60° latitude bands have excavated the surface, revealing ground ice at depths of up to 2 meters (7 feet). Additionally, debris aprons found at the base of steep slopes in these regions have been shown by ground-penetrating radar to contain large fractions of ice.12