‘Marsquakes' point to liquid water in red planet's crust, study finds
Liquid water may be locked in rock just a few kilometres beneath Martian ground – much closer to the surface of the red planet than previously thought.
Using data from Nasa's now-retired InSight lander, a China-led international team of researchers analysed seismic waves from 'marsquakes' and meteorite impacts recorded between 2018 and 2022. They revealed a mysterious zone in the planet's crust they said was best explained by a layer of water-saturated rock.
If confirmed, this underground layer – between 5.4km and 8km (3.3-5 miles) deep – could hold as much water as a global layer up to 780 metres (2,550 feet) thick, according to their paper published in National Science Review last month.
Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team.
The amount matched what scientists believe to be Mars' missing water, after taking into account the water that has escaped into space, become locked into rocks or remains as ice and vapour, said the researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Australian National University and the University of Milano-Bicocca.
'Our results provide the first seismic evidence of liquid water at the base of the Martian upper crust, shaping our understanding of Mars' water cycle and the potential evolution of habitable environments on the planet,' they wrote in the paper.
Nasa's InSight lander arrived on Mars in 2018 with a unique mission: not to roam the surface, but to listen to what was happening beneath it. For four years, it used a sensitive seismometer to detect subtle ground movements caused by crustal stress and meteorite impacts.
Just as doctors use ultrasounds to scan inside the human body, scientists pieced together information about Mars' subsurface layers by studying how seismic waves travel through the Martian interior. Before shutting down in 2022, InSight recorded more than 1,000 seismic events, creating a trove of data that researchers are still analysing today.
A breakthrough came in 2024, when a team from the University of California San Diego and UC Berkeley found that Mars' mid crust – around 11-20km deep – could contain fractured rock fully saturated with liquid water. Their study, based on theoretical models, made the first strong scientific case that Mars might still hold underground water.
The new study, led by Sun Weijia from the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Institute of Geology and Geophysics, went a step further.
While most previous Mars seismic studies relied on low-frequency data, which could only detect large-scale structures, Sun's team used higher-frequency signals, which gave them a much sharper view to about 500 metres in resolution, of the top 10km of Mars' crust.
Looking at signals from three specific seismic events recorded by InSight – including the strongest quake ever recorded on another planet – the researchers identified a clear drop in wave speed at around 5.4km to 8km deep. This usually points to a layer of porous rock filled with liquid water.
At that depth, conditions on Mars are warm and pressurised enough for water to stay liquid. The researchers say this zone could represent a kind of 'last refuge' for liquid water on modern Mars.
While the discovery is scientifically significant, the water is still far too deep to be accessed with existing drilling technology. It cannot be used for future missions – at least not any time soon.
The team also cautioned that their estimate was based only on data from the region directly beneath the InSight lander. Future missions with better seismometers could help confirm their findings, both at the InSight site and in other regions across Mars, they wrote.
More from South China Morning Post:
For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2025.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Malay Mail
2 days ago
- Malay Mail
Spillover from animals or lab leak? WHO says Covid-19 origins still unknown as lack of data hampers four-year investigation
GENEVA, June 28 — All hypotheses on how the Covid-19 pandemic began remain open, the World Health Organization said yesterday, following an inconclusive four-year investigation that was hamstrung by crucial information being withheld. The global catastrophe killed an estimated 20 million people, according to the WHO, while shredding economies, crippling health systems and turning people's lives upside-down. The first cases were detected in Wuhan in China in late 2019, and understanding where the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid came from is key to preventing future pandemics. However, a lengthy investigation launched by the UN's health agency said that pending further data, the origin of Covid and how it first spread remains elusive. 'As things stand, all hypotheses must remain on the table, including zoonotic spillover and lab leak,' WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference, referring to the two main hypotheses as to how the pandemic began. Expert investigation An initial WHO-Chinese joint report in March 2021 concluded that the virus most likely jumped from bats to humans via an intermediate animal. It deemed a leak from Wuhan's virology laboratories — known for their research on coronaviruses — to be 'extremely unlikely'. However, that investigation faced harsh criticism for lacking transparency and access, and for not seriously evaluating the lab-leak theory. Tedros launched another investigation, setting up the Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO), comprising 27 international experts, in July 2021. Their 78-page report was published on Friday. It said the weight of available evidence suggests a spillover from animals — either directly from bats, or through an intermediate host. However, it could not conclude with certainty where and when this happened, nor whether the Wuhan wet market was where the virus first spilled over into humans. That said, the market 'appears to be the location for amplification of infection in humans', leading to widespread transmission. 'Evidence for widespread infections or cases in any other countries prior to December 2019 is lacking,' it added. While spillover was the best supported theory on the evidence currently available, 'until further requests for information are met, or more scientific data becomes available, the origins of SARS-CoV-2 and how it entered the human population will remain inconclusive,' SAGO chair Marietjie Venter said at the press conference. Lab leak theories 'could not be investigated or excluded', she said, because much of the needed information had not been made available. The experts requested unpublished information from other countries, notably Germany and the United States, but without success, she said. Earlier this week, one SAGO member resigned and three others asked for their names to be removed from the report. 'Crucial question' 'Over the past five years, we have learned a lot about Covid-19 but there is one crucial question about the pandemic that we have not yet answered: how it started,' Tedros said. 'Despite our repeated requests, China hasn't provided hundreds of viral sequences from individuals with Covid-19 early in the pandemic, more detailed information on animals sold at markets in Wuhan, and information on work done and biosafety conditions at laboratories in Wuhan,' he said. He said WHO has requested access to intelligence reports by governments around the world on the origins of Covid-19. US President Donald Trump's administration has officially embraced the lab leak theory. Moral imperative Tedros said finding out how Covid-19 started was a moral imperative for those who lost their lives in the pandemic and to prevent further outbreaks. He said the virus was continuing to evolve, take lives and leave people suffering with post-Covid conditions, or so-called long Covid. Tedros said the WHO is appealing to countries with information about the origins of Covid-19 to share information. SAGO said it would continue to evaluate any new, sound scientific evidence and update its findings accordingly. — AFP
The Star
3 days ago
- The Star
China-tied AI tools like DeepSeek face US federal ban over 'threat'
A bipartisan group of US lawmakers introduced a bill in both chambers of Congress to ban the federal use of China-linked artificial intelligence tools such as DeepSeek, writing the latest chapter in the tech rivalry between the world's top AI powers. Titled the 'No Adversarial AI Act', the proposed legislation aims to prohibit federal agencies from procuring or deploying AI technologies developed in China, Russia, Iran and North Korea. The bill was introduced in the House by US congressman John Moolenaar, a Michigan Republican who chairs the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, and Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois, the panel's senior Democrat. Rick Scott, a Florida Republican, and Gary Peters, a Michigan Democrat, introduced the companion legislation in the Senate. 'Artificial intelligence controlled by foreign adversaries poses a direct threat to our national security, our data and our government operations,' Krishnamoorthi said in a statement. 'We cannot allow hostile regimes to embed their code in our most sensitive systems. This bipartisan legislation will create a clear firewall between foreign adversary AI and the US government, protecting our institutions and the American people.' Chinese AI systems, Krishnamoorthi added, 'do not belong on government devices' and 'shouldn't be entrusted with government data'. The act requires the government to maintain a public list of AI models developed by foreign adversaries, updated every 180 days, with limited exemptions for research or critical functions. Federal agencies would also be barred from buying or deploying those tools unless approved by the head of an executive agency, with written notice to both Congress and the Office of Management and Budget. Exemptions may be granted for specific purposes such as academic research, but they would be tightly controlled. The bill, which appears largely to be targeting China's AI giant DeepSeek, came as Washington accused the company of harbouring close ties with the country's Communist Party and carrying out technology theft from America. DeepSeek has allegedly supported China's military and intelligence operations while gaining access to significant quantities of advanced Nvidia chips, Reuters reported earlier this week, citing a senior State Department official. Moolenaar in Wednesday's statement described AI as 'the strategic technology' at the centre of a 'new cold war', referring to the Sino-American tech rivalry. 'The CCP doesn't innovate – it steals, scales and subverts. From IP theft and chip smuggling to embedding AI in surveillance and military platforms, the Chinese Communist Party is racing to weaponise this technology.' 'We must draw a clear line: US government systems cannot be powered by tools built to serve authoritarian interests,' Moolenaar added. 'The select committee is taking action to block CCP-linked AI from infiltrating US government systems,' the House panel posted on social media on Wednesday shortly after the bill's introduction. The act 'would ban AI tools tied to the Chinese Communist Party, like DeepSeek, from federal use, protecting national security from Beijing's digital authoritarianism', it added. Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for Beijing's embassy in the US, called Congress' allegations of Chinese technology theft 'nothing but slander and smears'. 'China actively promotes innovation in artificial intelligence, and places high importance on AI safety and ethics,' Liu said in an emailed response to questions. He described the Congress' move as 'the abuse of national security concepts to politicise trade and technology issues', adding that China firmly opposes America's 'malicious suppression and containment' of China's AI industry. With DeepSeek leading the charge, China's AI sector has expanded rapidly despite sweeping US restrictions aimed at curbing its access to advanced technologies. Its cost-efficient model, seen as a rival to ChatGPT, shook US markets earlier this year and triggered a sharp sell-off in tech stocks. Amid growing concerns over data security, several US companies and government agencies have already barred the use of DeepSeek. The Donald Trump administration is weighing a broader federal ban of the platform across government devices. In a hearing of the select committee earlier on Wednesday, Krishnamoorthi warned that 'DeepSeek is sending our data straight into the hands of the CCP', adding that 'as AI continues to get more powerful, the risks only grow greater'. In recent years, several US bills have been introduced to restrict the use of Chinese AI technologies. In February, US congressmen Josh Gottheimer, a New Jersey Democrat, and Darin LaHood, an Illinois Republican, introduced the 'No DeepSeek on Government Devices Act'. It directed federal agencies to remove the app from use in law enforcement and national security matters. The Senate last month introduced its own legislation to block Chinese AI, including the 'Decoupling America's AI Capabilities from China Act'. – South China Morning Post
New Straits Times
4 days ago
- New Straits Times
Spaceship carrying astronauts from India, Poland, Hungary, docks with ISS
WASHINGTON: A US commercial mission carrying astronauts from India, Poland and Hungary docked with the International Space Station today, marking the first time in decades that these nations have sent crew to space. Axiom Mission 4, or Ax-4, lifted off early Wednesday from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard a brand-new SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule riding a Falcon 9 rocket. Onboard were pilot Shubhanshu Shukla of India; mission specialists Slawosz Uznanski-Wisniewski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary; and Commander Peggy Whitson of the United States, a former NASA astronaut now with Axiom Space, which organises private spaceflights. The capsule, the fifth and final Dragon in the SpaceX fleet, was christened "Grace" after reaching orbit. It achieved "soft capture," or the first stage of docking, with the orbital lab today at 6:31am Eastern Time (1031 GMT). They later entered the station through the hatch and were greeted by the current ISS crew during a brief welcome ceremony. "It's so great to be here at last," said Whitson. "That was a long quarantine." The crew will now spend about 14 days aboard the station, conducting some 60 experiments – including studies on microalgae, sprouting salad seeds, and the hardiness of microscopic tardigrades in space. The last time India, Poland or Hungary sent people to space, their current crop of astronauts had not yet been born – and back then they were called cosmonauts, as they all flew on Soviet missions before the fall of the Iron Curtain. Shukla is the first Indian to reach space since Rakesh Sharma, who flew to the Salyut 7 station in 1984 as part of an Indo-Soviet mission. India's space agency, ISRO, sees this flight as a key step toward its first independent crewed mission, slated for 2027 under the Gaganyaan ("sky craft") program. "What a fantastic ride," Shukla said in Hindi after liftoff. "This isn't just the start of my journey to the International Space Station – it's the beginning of India's human space program." Each country is funding its astronaut's seat. Poland has spent €65 million (RM322 million) for its astronaut's flight, according to the Polish Space Agency. Hungary announced a US$100 million (RM423 million) deal with Axiom in 2022, according to while India has not officially commented. The Ax-4 launch comes after technical issues delayed the mission, originally slated for early June. It also follows an online spat between US President Donald Trump and SpaceX chief Elon Musk, the world's richest person and, until recently, Trump's ally and advisor. Trump threatened to yank SpaceX's federal contracts – worth tens of billions of dollars – prompting Musk to threaten an early retirement of Dragon, the only US spacecraft currently certified to carry astronauts to the ISS. Musk walked back the threat a few hours later and in the days that followed continued to deescalate, stating on X that he had gone "too far." Any falling out between SpaceX and the US government would be massively disruptive, given NASA and the Pentagon's reliance on Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy to send up crew, cargo, satellites and probes.
