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News and Views
Nature 447, 785-786 (14 June 2007) | doi:10.1038/447785a; Published online 13 June 2007
Planetary science: Mars at the tipping point
Maria T. Zuber1
Abstract
There's a big problem with the idea of ancient oceans on Mars: if they were contained within the 'shoreline' visible today, sea level would not have been level. Could it be that Mars has since tipped over?
Despite spectacular in situ chemical and geological evidence for water on the surface of ancient Mars, courtesy of NASA's Opportunity and Spirit rovers1, 2, the temporal persistence and the spatial extent of surface water during the planet's early years remain unclear. Early studies raised the possibility that there was once an ocean in the lowlands of Mars's northern hemisphere3, 4 (Fig. 1
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