Daily Archives: January 23, 2024

Confectionery giant Mars has opened a new snacking research and development hub at its Goose Island campus in Chicago.

The new 44,000-square-foot hub is one of the seven global innovation centres operated by Mars around the world, the company noted.

The company has invested $42 million (38.6 million) in this facility dedicated to chocolate and nut testing, research and innovation.

Andrew Clarke, global president of Mars Snacking said, "This state-of-the-art facility will serve as the epicentre for the kind of groundbreaking research and development that will shape the snacking category for generations to come. Innovation has been at the heart of our success for over 100 years, and this significant investment reaffirms our unwavering commitment to staying ahead of the curve.

"With an assembly of trailblazing associates, pioneering partnerships that ignite our creativity and unparalleled technology at our fingertips, we will continue to push boundaries in our relentless pursuit of delivering extraordinary experiences for our consumers around the world."

The facility will allow its associates in Chicago to create and refine new products for the snacking portfolio before they are scaled at large around the globe.

It will centralise innovation components under one roof while also serving as a testing ground for future-focused, sustainable ingredients, Mars added.

The new hub will also feature a dedicated nut facility to enable next-generation testing, evaluation and application of peanuts and tree nuts within Mars products, such as Snickers, M&M'S and KIND.

The facility, powered with 100% renewable energy, is fossil-fuel-free and covered by renewable energy credits from Mars' wind farm in Ford Ridge, Illinois.

The new hub joins Mars' network of existing global innovation sites in Chicago, Illinois;Guangzhou, China; Huariou,China;Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania; andSlough, United Kingdom.

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Mars Opens Snacking Research And Development Hub In Chicago | ESM Magazine - ESM European Supermarket Magazine

Maybe Mars isnt as dry as we thought. ESAs Mars Express has revealed new details about a region near Mars equator that could contain a massive deposit of water ice several kilometers deep. If it is indeed ice, there is enough of it in this one deposit that if melted, water would cover the entire planet up to 2.7 meters (almost 9 feet) deep.

But ice is just one explanation for the unusual features detected by the orbital spacecraft. Another is that this is a giant pile of dust several kilometers deep although the dust would still need to have some ice mixed in.

Mars Express has been orbiting Mars since December of 2003 and back in 2007, the spacecraft studied the Medusae Fossae Formation (MFF), a large geological formation that includes wind-sculpted ridges and grooves, abrupt mesas, interspersed with smooth and gently undulating areas. The region extends intermittently for more than 5,000 km (3,100 miles) along the equator of Mars, extending from just south of Olympus Mons to Apollinaris Patera, with a smaller additional region closer to Gale Crater, where the Curiosity rover is exploring.

Various spacecraft in addition to Mars Express, such as NASAs Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey, have also detected subsurface ice, as much as 2.5 km (1.5 miles) deep.

Now, new data from Mars Express suggest layers of water ice stretching even further underground the most water ever found in this part of the planet.

Weve explored the MFF again using newer data from Mars Expresss MARSIS radar, and found the deposits to be even thicker than we thought: up to 3.7 km (2.3 miles) thick, said Thomas Watters of the Smithsonian Institution, USA, lead author of both the new research and the initial 2007 study, in an ESA press release. Excitingly, the radar signals match what wed expect to see from layered ice, and are similar to the signals we see from Marss polar caps, which we know to be very ice rich.

Watters and his team say that if melted, the ice contained within the MFF would cover the entire planet in a layer of water 1.5 to 2.7 m deep, enough to fill Earths Red Sea.

But MFFs windswept landscapes contains one of the most extensive deposits of dust on Mars, which is possibly the biggest single source of dust on Mars. Some studies determined the strange features in this landscape could have been formed by explosive volcanoes.

In the 2007 observations with Mars Express, the radar data showed the MFF to be relatively transparent to radar and low in density two characteristics which would reveal icy deposits. However, scientists couldnt rule out a drier possibility: that the features are actually giant accumulations of windblown dust, volcanic ash or sediment.

But the beauty of long-lasting spacecraft is that it provides the opportunity for multiple observations of a single region on Mars over many years, providing additional follow-up data for study.

Heres where the new radar data comes in! Given how deep it is, if the MFF was simply a giant pile of dust, wed expect it to become compacted under its own weight, said co-author Andrea Cicchetti of the National Institute for Astrophysics, Italy. This would create something far denser than what we actually see with MARSIS. And when we modelled how different ice-free materials would behave, nothing reproduced the properties of the MFF we need ice.

The new results instead suggest layers of dust and ice, all topped by a protective layer of dry dust or ash several hundred meters thick.

We do know that massive stores of ice near the equator could not have formed in the planets present climate.

This latest analysis challenges our understanding of the Medusae Fossae Formation, and raises as many questions as answers, says Colin Wilson, ESA project scientist for Mars Express and the ESA ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO). How long ago did these ice deposits form, and what was Mars like at that time? If confirmed to be water ice, these massive deposits would change our understanding of Mars climate history. Any reservoir of ancient water would be a fascinating target for human or robotic exploration.

If this does turn out to be large stores of water ice, the MFF deposits would be an incredibly valuable resource for any future human exploration of Mars. These types of missions would need to land near the planets equator, due to landing constraints, and resources like abundant solar power, and more moderate temperatures. The presence of equatorial water ice could provide a steady supply of water for a future base on Mars.

Further reading: ESA

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The Ice Sheet on Mars is Even Thicker Than Previously Believed - Universe Today

New data from the European Space Agency's Mars Express orbiter suggests a massive deposit called the Medusae Fossae Formation (MFF) holds enough water ice to cover the entire planet in an ocean that's anywhere from five to 8.8 feet deep if it were somehow melted, that is.

Scientists had previously held that there was still a chance the deposit was largely made of volcanic ash. But given the latest findings, it's far more likely to be made of water ice, especially given its geographical features that resemble those found at the planet's polar ice caps.

"Dry material, no matter what it is, just doesnt fit," Smithsonian Institution senior scientist Tom Watters, the lead author of a new paper published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, told New Scientist of the research. "We just cant come up with another material other than water ice that fits the electrical properties, that also has this layering that were finding."

It's a particularly exciting new discovery as it represents the largest deposit of water ice found near the Red Planet's equator, making it an exciting potential location for future explorers to visit.

"Weve explored the MFFagain using newer data from Mars Expresss MARSIS radar, and found the deposits to be even thicker than we thought: up to [2.3 miles] thick," said Watters in an ESA statement about the work. "Excitingly, the radar signals match what wed expect to see from layered ice, and are similar to the signals we see from Marss polar caps, which we know to be very ice rich."

The surface of the formation is made of geographical features that were likely formed by wind, which measure hundreds of miles across and several miles tall.

While initial measurements from back in 2007 suggested the possibility that the region was made of water ice, scientists couldn't rule out that it was a massive accumulation of windblown dust, volcanic ash or sediment instead.

"Given how deep it is, if the MFF was simply a giant pile of dust, wed expect it to become compacted under its own weight," said coauthor Andrea Cicchetti of the National Institute for Astrophysics, Italy, in the statement. "This would create something far denser than what we actually see with MARSIS."

Their conclusion: the MFF is made up of layers of dust and ice.

But there's one big problem: the formation's ice deposits are trapped underneath several hundred feet of dust or ash, making it difficult to reach for any future Mars explorers.

And plenty of questions remain.

"This latest analysis challenges our understanding of the Medusae Fossae Formation, and raises as many questions as answers," said Mars Express project scientist Colin Wilson in the statement. "How long ago did these ice deposits form, and what was Mars like at that time?"

"If confirmed to be water ice, these massive deposits would change our understanding of Mars climate history," he added. "Any reservoir of ancient water would be a fascinating target for human or robotic exploration."

More on Mars water: Chinese Rover Finds Evidence of Liquid Water on Mars

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Scientists Discover Enough Mars Ice to Cover Planet in Water - Futurism

Art by Mars Robinson

Continuing with the BTT series, I felt the need to highlight one of the most criminally underrated and disrespected players ever. Chris Action Jackson, better known as Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf is a 6'1" point guard who has the ability to score not only at will but at an alarming rate. Even at the young age of 54, you can find him torching your favorite veterans and young hoop influencers alike in the Ice Cube-owned BIG 3 league.

Mahmouds illustrious basketball career is the stuff of legend. A star at LSU, Rauf garnered national attention with his shifty and quick style of play. He was very Barry Sanders-like in his fluidity weaving through defenders to create space for his often automatic jump shot. Rauf was your favorite shooters favorite shooter. A career 29.0 PPG at LSU on 47/37/86. Rauf was shooting from the logo before it was even a thing.

Before Steph, Dame, and Trae gave us 40-foot bombs on the regular, Mahmoud gave us spectacle after spectacle with his premier shot-making. After racking up two national Player of the Year awards, Mahmoud would then be drafted third overall in the 1990 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets. Mahmoud was a bright spot for a Denver team that saw little to no success while he was there.

During a six-season stint in Denver (14.6 PPG on 44/35/90), Rauf was named to the NBAs All-Rookie Second Team (90'), was the NBAs Most Improved Player (93'), led the league in free throw percentage twice (93'-94', 95'-96'), posted his career high in assists (20) in November of 95' and scored his career high of 51 in December of 95'. Shortly after spending some time in Sacramento, Rauf would retire from the game of basketball saying that he lost interest in the game.

Rauf is one of many athletes to come out and speak on how things are in America, and he never shied away from criticizing and bringing forth real issues. Were all aware of how he was against the National Anthem and would stand with his head down in Islamic prayer during it. Actions like this led to his house in his home state of Mississippi being burned down in 2001.

Due to his views on the US and the flag, Mahmoud believed he was blackballed from the league, and I have to agree. Weve seen this same episode with former Chicago Bulls guard, Craig Hodges. Hodges used his voice as an athlete to shed light on the poor and disenfranchised. He encouraged his teammates to do the same but was mainly ignored.

When you look at all of the hyper-scoring guards that we have in todays league, you have to look back at players like Rauf who helped set the foundation. His name doesnt get nearly enough recognition for not only his skill set but for his belief in himself and what he believed in.

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Before Their Time Vol. 3. In the NBAs history, many players have | by Mars Robinson | SportsRaid | Jan, 2024 - Medium

Theres overwhelming evidence that Mars was once wet and warm. Rivers flowed across its surface and carved intricate channel systems revealed by our orbiters. Expansive oceans even larger than Earths may have covered a third of its surface. Then something happened: Mars lost its atmosphere, cooled down, and surface water disappeared.

But as our observations of Mars become more detailed, its looking like Mars didnt lose its water in one cataclysmic episode. Deepening evidence shows that it lost its water gradually. The planet may have had recurring episodes of surface water that persisted intermittently over a longer period of time. If thats true, it has implications for potential life on Mars.

New research published in Earth and Planetary Science Letters is bolstering the idea that Mars may have taken a long time to lose its water. The research letter is titled New Maximum Constraints on the Era of Martian Valley Network Formation. The author is Alexander Morgan, a research scientist at the Planetary Science Institute who studies geomorphology.

Mars today is a global desert, but its surface preserves extensive evidence of past flowing water, including what appear to be river valleys, Morgan says. The timescale over which these valleys formed has big implications for early Mars habitability, as long eras with stable liquid water would be more conducive to life, he said.

The extensive evidence of ancient rivers on Mars is highlighted by the Perseverance Rover and the area it is exploring. Its called Jezero Crater, and its the site of an ancient impact crater. At some time in the past, the crater was flooded with water, creating a massive sedimentary basin. Orbital images of Jezero show ancient river channels flooding into the gigantic crater.

As Perseverances landing site shows, impact craters and rivers mingle with one another across the Martian surface. That fact is the key to Morgans research. By dating craters near river channels, he placed temporal constraints on when the rivers that created the channels were flowing.

In this study, I used craters that predate and postdate valley systems to place maximum bounds of hundreds of millions of years on the era over which these systems formed, Morgan said. Previous work had only determined minimum timescales, so these new results provide an upper bound on the timescale over which Martian valleys were active. Given what we know about erosion rates on early Mars, longer timescales imply that conditions permitting rivers were highly intermittent, with long arid periods interspersed with brief episodes of fluvial activity.

Mars river valleys formed over three billion years ago. Theyre the strongest evidence that the planet had surface water. Research shows that it takes tens of thousands of years for flowing water to carve a valley into the surface, but nobody has figured out how many different flow events there were and how much total time it took for these valleys to form. Until now.

Our understanding of Mars has grown considerably in recent years and will keep growing. Our understanding of its climate history is undergoing a revolution. Previously, there were two opposing versions of Marss ancient past. One says that it was warm and wet and potentially habitable; the other says it was a frigid planet covered in ice sheets.

But things in Nature are seldom so simple, even if wed like them to be. Growing evidence, including this work, shows that theres more complexity to the story than either warm and wet or cold and dry can encapsulate.

Over the past decade or so, weve come to realize that these descriptors are far too general, and it doesnt really make sense to try to condense hundreds of millions of years of climate history into a two-word description, Morgan said.

As weve studied Earth, weve come to realize that the climate oscillated wildly during its long history. During some periods, the Earth was covered with extensive glaciers several kilometres thick. At other times, the glaciers retreated to their mountain redoubts. Why wouldnt other planets have equally as varied histories?

Like Earth, early Mars was complex, and the conditions permitting surface water likely varied considerably. Earth has undergone massive climatic changes throughout its history for example, 20,000 years ago, the area that is now Chicago was beneath half a mile of ice and surface conditions permitting rivers on early Mars likewise probably waxed and waned.

That waxing and waning means it took a long time for the rivers to erode the landscape and form channels and valleys. One possible explanation is that large boulders in the riverbeds inhibited further erosion. Another is that the rivers flowed infrequently, possibly as little as 0.001 % of the time. If thats the case, it could be because of what we call Milankovitch cycles here on Earth.

Milankovitch cycles are changes in the Earths relative position and orientation to the Sun. Things like axial tilt, orbital eccentricity, and precession create changes in our planets climate. Earths axial tilt varies by about 3.5 degrees every 40,000 years or so. Mars has an even more pronounced axial tilt variation that undergoes substantial changes in hundreds of thousands or millions of years.

Over short timescales, river flow is controlled by rainfall or upstream snow melt. Over longer timescales, Earths rivers are affected by climatic changes, Morgan said. For example, 20,000 years ago, there were large lakes and larger rivers across what is now Nevada. Martian rivers would have operated in a similar way, with short-term variability due to storms or snowmelt, and longer-term variability due to changes in the planets spin and orbit around the Sun.

Or powerful volcanic activity couldve periodically warmed the planet, melting ice sheets and spawning rivers that carved telltale channels into the planets surface. The Tharsis Montes region shows that volcanoes played a role in Mars history. Tharsis Montes is home to three massive shield volcanoes that dwarf Earths volcanoes. Another volcano, Olympus Mons, is just northwest of Tharsis Montes and is the largest volcano in the Solar System.

We dont really know what happened on Mars. Is Mars just a standard example of marginally habitable planets that become uninhabitable? Or is it a striking example of a planet that stubbornly held onto its water through multiple climatic episodes? Did simple life get started on Mars before it was snuffed out, and is that just the way things work? Or is surface water on any planet for any period of time extremely rare?

For now, we dont have any clear answers to those big questions. Planets are big, complicated, long-lived, and dynamic objects. Understanding what happened billions of years ago on a planet is a daunting task.

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Early Mars Climate was Complex, with Streams Flowing Intermittently for Millions of Years - Universe Today

NASA announced on Saturday that it lost communications with Ingenuity, its reconnaissance helicopter that's currently located on the surface of Mars.

The space agency announced Saturday that after Ingenuity executed Flight 72 on January 18, communications between the helicopter and Perseverance, NASA's Mars rover, terminated. The communication severing occurred while Ingenuity was performing its descent, according to the space agency.

Only a day later, NASA posted another update to its NASA JPL X account, writing communications between Perseverance and Ingenuity were re-established after Perseverance was tasked to perform "long-duration listening sessions for Ingenuity's signal". NASA added that teams are currently analyzing data from Flight 72 to determine the cause for the communications dropout and ways to mitigate it from happening again.

Notably, this isn't the first time NASA has lost communication with Ingenuity, as the space agency announced last year it was unable to return to regular flights due to the communications blackout. After analysis, NASA was able to reconnect with Ingenuity and get back to regular flights. At this stage, it's not confirmed if Ingenuity will fly again, but judging by its track record, I would bet NASA will be able to get the small helicopter up and running once again.

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NASA announces its reconnected with helicopter stationed on Mars - TweakTown

The US space agency has regained contact with its tiny helicopter on the planet Mars after an unexpected communication breakdown prompted fears the research craft had been damaged or destroyed.

Nasa's Ingenuity drone arrived on Mars in 2021 aboard the Perseverance rover.

The 0.5-metre tall drone is the first motorised craft to fly autonomously on another planet and has been transmitting data back to Earth via Perseverance.

Contact with Ingenuity cut out suddenly on Thursday during its 72nd flight on Mars.

But Nasa said it had been re-established late on Saturday.

"Good news today," Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

The agency said contact had been made with the helicopter by commanding Perseverance to "perform long-duration listening sessions for Ingenuity's signal".

"The team is reviewing the new data to better understand the unexpected coms dropout during Flight 72," it added.

Ingenuity's Flight 72 was a test mission aimed at checking out the craft's systems after an early unplanned landing during a previous flight.

Nasa said the drone reached an altitude of 12 metres but faced problems on descent.

"Communications between the helicopter and rover terminated early, prior to touchdown," the agency said.

JPL had on Friday noted Perseverance was temporarily "out of line-of-sight with Ingenuity, but the team could consider driving closer for a visual inspection".

In a response to a post on X asking if Ingenuity would be able to fly again, JPL on Saturday said "the team needs to assess the new data before that can be determined".

Nasa has lost contact with the helicopter before, including for two months last year.

Mars is known to be a graveyard for spacecraft, because of the planets powerful dust storms and unstable terrain that can damage rovers and other technology.

Despite the harsh conditions, Ingenuity has proved remarkably durable. It has survived glacially cold Martian nights, kept warm by the solar panels that recharge its batteries during daylight hours.

Ingenuity has far exceeded its original goal of making five successful flights over 30 days, with 72 flights since arriving in 2021.

The mini craft, which weighs only 1.8kg, has covered more than 17km and reached altitudes of up to 24m.

The drone serves as an aerial scout to assist the Perseverance as it searches the Red Planet for possible signs of ancient microbial life or other discoveries.

Updated: January 21, 2024, 10:23 AM

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US regains contact with Ingenuity mini-helicopter on Mars - The National

In the cold, silent expanse of space, two robotic pioneers touched down on Mars in January 2004, heralding a new era in interplanetary exploration. NASAs twin rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, made their grand entrance to the Red Planet, landing on opposite sides.

Their descent was nothing short of dramatic: each encased in airbags, they bounced on the Martian surface around 30 times before coming to a rest.

Sized akin to golf carts, these rovers embarked on a groundbreaking mission: to seek evidence of water on Mars.

The discoveries they made not only altered our understanding of the Red Planet but also rewrote science textbooks.

Shortly after landing, Opportunity stumbled upon what would become an iconic find the blueberries, small spherical pebbles of hematite formed in acidic water. This was concrete evidence of Mars watery past.

Spirit, showcasing resilience despite a damaged wheel, later unveiled signs of ancient hot springs. These could have been sanctuaries for microbial life billions of years ago, hinting at the possibility of past life on Mars.

Before their arrival, Mars was a mystery. Orbital images had suggested water-carved channels, but concrete evidence was missing.

Our twin rovers were the first to prove a wet, early Mars once existed, noted Matt Golombek, a former project scientist at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

The legacy of Spirit and Opportunity paved the way for larger rovers like Curiosity and Perseverance. The data they gathered played a crucial role in the development and approval of the Curiosity rover.

Launched in 2012, Curiositys mission was to investigate Mars ancient chemistry and the possibility of it once being a habitat for life.

Building on Curiositys findings, Perseverance, which landed in 2021, took things further. It began collecting rock cores for the Mars Sample Return campaign, a collaborative effort between NASA and ESA, aimed at seeking signs of ancient microbial life.

The journey of Spirit and Opportunity was also a tale of technological and human evolution. The engineering practices developed during their mission laid the groundwork for future Martian surface exploration.

Specialized software and 3D goggles, for instance, became standard tools for navigating the Martian terrain.

These advancements led to safer, longer drives and more complex daily plans required for operating the newer rovers, Curiosity and Perseverance.

Science team members evolved into adept virtual field geologists, using years of experience to guide their decisions in exploring the Martian landscape with their robotic counterparts.

Designed for a 90-day mission, the rovers far exceeded expectations. Spirit landed on January 3 and Opportunity on January 24, 2004.

They persevered for years, with Opportunity enduring nearly 15 years until it was silenced by a massive dust storm in 2018.

This endurance went beyond what scientists and engineers had hoped for. Opportunity, in particular, made history by covering nearly 30 miles (45 kilometers) on Mars, the farthest distance driven on another planet.

John Callas, a former project manager at JPL, reflected on this achievement: This was a paradigm shift no one was expecting. The distance and time scale we covered were a leap in scope that is truly historic.

The extensive journey of the rovers was crucial in revealing Mars varied watery past, from fresh water bodies to hot springs and acidic pools.

Beyond their scientific achievements, Spirit and Opportunity served as beacons of inspiration. Abigail Fraemans story is a testament to this.

As a high school student, she witnessed the excitement of Opportunitys landing at JPL. This experience propelled her toward a career in Mars geology, eventually leading her to become the deputy project scientist for Curiosity.

The people who kept our twin rovers running for all those years are an extraordinary group, and its remarkable how many have made exploring Mars their career, Fraeman said.

I feel so lucky I get to work with them every day while we continue to venture into places no human has ever seen in our attempt to answer some of the biggest questions.

In summary, the journey of Spirit and Opportunity on Mars stands as a monumental chapter in space exploration.

Their discoveries and the technological advancements they spurred have opened new horizons in our quest to understand the Red Planet.

The legacies of these robotic pioneers continue to inspire new generations of scientists, engineers, and dreamers, all united in the pursuit of unraveling the mysteries of our universe.

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Mars Spirit and Opportunity rovers celebrate 20 years of exploration - Earth.com

The European Space Agencys (ESA) spacecraft, the Mars Express, has located a Martian water reservoir that is almost two miles deep. The reservoir is made up of water ice, which, if melted, could cover the entire planet in a layer of water 1.5 to 2.7 meters deep, the ESA estimates.

This reservoir is the most ice ever found in the equatorial area of Mars, the ESA says, and future studies of the surface of the Red Planet, as well as the area where these reservoirs are, could help provide more insight into Marss history including how the planet came to be so dusty and sandy despite astronomers theorizing that it was once a paradise.

The particular region where the water reservoir was found is known as the Medusae Fossae Formation or MFF. This location is along the Martian equator and consists of several wind-swept features that can measure up to hundreds of kilometers across, the ESA explains in its report.

These features, in fact, are probably the biggest source of dust on the Martian surface, and as such, they have some of the most extensive deposits that researchers have managed to spot so far while studying the Red Planet.

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While initial observations of these deposits left researchers baffled, by studying things further, the astronomers working with the Mars Express team were able to determine that they are likely made of water ice, thus making this one of the largest water reservoirs that weve ever found on Mars.

Further, the discovery of such water also helps to highlight that it is likely that Mars was once covered in oceans and rivers, which scientists have theorized for decades as rovers like Curiosity and Perseverance continue to explore mineral-rich locations on the Martian surface.

Unfortunately, determining just how dense the Martian water ice reservoirs are will have to wait, as the data gleaned from the Mars Express cannot tell us everything we need to know about it. Perhaps a future manned mission to Mars could help us learn more.

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Martian water reservoir changes our perception of the Red Planet - BGR