According to an article at MSNBC, scientists have concluded that there was at one time pools of salt water on the surface of mars. They drew this conclusion from the sedimintation patterns, although, they had previously "prooven" that there once was water on the surface, they just weren't sure if it was standing or not.
I think this is the discovery that they had hope for when the planned the MER missions a number of years back. I think it's fascinating that they can take such trace evidence and conclude that conditions may once have been right for primitive life to develop. Now they just have to find the fossils :)
Posted by doug at March 23, 2004 04:40 PM