In a significant discovery, scientists have collected new evidence supporting the theory of an ancient ocean on Mars, thanks to data from China's Zhurong rover.

The rover, part of China's Tianwen-1 mission, landed in Mars' northern lowlands, specifically in the Utopia Planitia region, in 2021.

Research, including studies published in the journal Scientific Reports, indicates the presence of geological structures such as troughs and sediment channels that suggest ancient coastlines existed approximately 3.68 billion years ago.

Data from orbiting spacecraft like NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, combined with Zhurong's findings, point to a water ocean that persisted until around 3.42 billion years ago.

This ocean existed during a period when Mars began to transition into a colder, drier environment, losing much of its atmosphere.

Real evidence of both shallow and deep marine settings, coupled with coastlines, underscores the plausibility of such an ocean.

Planetary scientists Bo Wu and Sergey Krasilnikov from Hong Kong Polytechnic University have contributed significantly to this research.

They emphasized the presence of silted water and layered deposits hinting at past marine conditions.

This discovery furthers the hypothesis that Mars once maintained conditions favorable for life, including potentially sufficient warmth and atmosphere to support microbial organisms.

Since May 2021, the Zhurong rover, named after a mythical Chinese god of fire, performed its investigations with six scientific instruments.

The mission exceeded its expected three-month duration but entered hibernation in May 2022, likely due to dust accumulation.

Understanding the fate of Mars' earlier water presence continues to be a priority for scientists.

Recent findings, aside from this study, including seismic data from NASA's InSight lander, suggest that large water reservoirs might still exist deep underground.