Scientists have found liquid water on Mars, deep within the planet's outer crust. This discovery was made using data collected by NASA's Insight lander, which has been on Mars since 2018. By studying vibrations and Mars quakes, researchers identified the presence of liquid water, a first for Mars.
While frozen water exists at the Martian poles and there is water vapor in the atmosphere, this is the first time liquid water has been found on Mars. The research has been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The Insight mission, which aimed to study rocky planets like Earth and Mars, ended in December 2022 after providing valuable data on Mars' seismic activity.
The analysis of the data showed that there are water reservoirs located between six to twelve miles deep in Mars' crust. Knowing about liquid water on Mars is important for understanding the planet's climate and history. Scientists believe water plays a crucial role in a planet's evolution, helping to solve the mystery of what happened to Mars' water over billions of years.
Even though there is evidence of ancient rivers and lakes on Mars, the planet has been dry for about three billion years. The discovery of water deep inside Mars suggests there might be habitable environments underground, which could be explored in the future. However, accessing water resources buried 10-20km below the surface poses challenges for any plans to colonize Mars.
Original news source: Reservoir of liquid water found deep in Martian rocks (BBC)
๐ง Listen:
๐ Vocabulary:
Group or Classroom Activities
Warm-up Activities:
– Charades
Instructions: Divide the students into two teams. Write down key words related to the article on separate pieces of paper (e.g., Mars, water, NASA, InSight lander). One student from each team will pick a piece of paper and act out the word without speaking while their team tries to guess what it is.
– News Summary
Instructions: Ask students to work in pairs and summarize the article about liquid water on Mars in their own words. Encourage them to focus on the main points and key information. After a few minutes, have some pairs share their summaries with the class.
– Vocabulary Pictionary
Instructions: Write down key vocabulary words from the article on the board (e.g., Insight lander, seismic activity, habitable). Divide the students into teams and have them take turns choosing a word to draw while their teammates guess the word. This activity helps reinforce vocabulary retention.
– Opinion Poll
Instructions: Divide the class into small groups and have them discuss their opinions on the discovery of liquid water on Mars. Encourage them to consider the implications of this discovery and whether they think it could lead to future exploration or colonization efforts. After the discussion, each group can share their main points with the class.
– Pros and Cons
Instructions: Ask students to work individually and make a list of the pros and cons of finding liquid water on Mars. After a few minutes, have them pair up and discuss their lists, sharing their ideas with each other. Finally, open up the discussion to the whole class and explore different perspectives on the topic.
๐ค Comprehension Questions:
Scientists found liquid water on Mars recently.
NASA's Insight lander helped in making this discovery by studying vibrations and Mars quakes to identify the presence of liquid water.
The liquid water found on Mars is located deep within the planet's outer crust, between six to twelve miles deep.
Finding liquid water on Mars is significant because it helps scientists understand the planet's climate, history, and evolution.
According to the article, Mars has been dry for about three billion years.
Scientists believe water plays a crucial role in a planet's evolution by helping to solve the mystery of what happened to Mars' water over billions of years.
Challenges that might arise from accessing water resources deep inside Mars include the difficulty of reaching water reservoirs buried 10-20km below the surface, posing obstacles for any plans to colonize Mars.
Following this discovery, scientists hope to explore potential habitable environments underground on Mars, where liquid water has been found, for future exploration.
๐งโ๏ธ Listen and Fill in the Gaps:
Scientists have found liquid on Mars, deep within the planet's outer crust. This discovery was made data by NASA's lander, which has been on Mars since 2018. By studying vibrations and Mars quakes, researchers identified the presence of liquid water, a first for Mars. While frozen water exists at the Martian poles and there is water vapor in the , this is the first time liquid water has been found on Mars. The has been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of . The Insight , which aimed to study rocky planets like Earth and Mars, ended in December 2022 after providing valuable data on Mars' seismic activity. The analysis of the data showed that there are water reservoirs located between six to twelve miles deep in Mars' . about liquid water on Mars is important for understanding the planet's climate and history. Scientists water a crucial role in a planet's evolution, helping to solve the mystery of what happened to Mars' water over billions of years. Even though there is of rivers and lakes on Mars, the planet has been dry for about three billion years. The discovery of water deep inside Mars suggests there might be habitable environments underground, which could be in the future. However, accessing water resources buried 10-20km below the surface poses challenges for any plans to Mars.
๐ฌ Discussion Questions:
1. What do you think it would be like to live on Mars with liquid water underground?
2. How do you feel about the idea of exploring habitable environments deep inside Mars in the future?
3. Do you think finding liquid water on Mars is important for understanding the planet's climate?
4. Why do you think it's challenging to access water resources buried deep below Mars' surface?
5. How would you react if you were part of a team sent to explore the water reservoirs on Mars?
6. Do you believe there could be life forms in the underground habitable environments on Mars?
7. Why do you think studying Mars' seismic activity is important for understanding the planet?
8. What are your thoughts on the possibility of colonizing Mars in the future?
9. How do you think finding liquid water on Mars could impact future space exploration?
10. Do you think the discovery of liquid water on Mars changes our understanding of the planet's history?
11. Why do you think it's significant that liquid water was found deep within Mars' crust?
12. How important do you think water is for the evolution of a planet?
13. What are your opinions on the idea of humans eventually living on Mars?
14. How would you feel if you were a scientist working on the Insight mission studying Mars?
15. Do you like the idea of space exploration and discovering new things about other planets? Why or why not?
Individual Activities
๐๐ญ Vocabulary Meanings:
Click a dot next to a word, then click the dot next to its meaning to draw a line connecting them.
Words
Meanings
๐ก Multiple Choice Questions:
๐ต๏ธ True or False Questions:
๐ Write a Summary:
Write a summary of this news article in two sentences.
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