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scientist have discovered a giant volcano onMarsthat has been " hidden in plain sight " for more than 50 years .
The volcano is around 280 miles ( 450 kilometers ) wide and more than 29,600 feet ( 9,000 meters ) gamey . It is located in the eastern part of Mars ' Tharsis volcanic province near the major planet ’s equator , scientists revealed at the55th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference , held in Texas between March 11 and 15 .
The newly discovered giant volcano is located near Mars' equator. It is pictured in the image above in relation to other volcanoes found within the Tharsis region of the planet.
The team also spotted what seems to be the remains of a sheet of bury glacier ice near the base of the volcano . They believe this could make the volcano a " prime location " for astrobiological research and the lookup for polarity ofalien life .
" This combined gargantuan volcano and possible glacier ice uncovering is significant , as it indicate to an exciting new location to study Mars ' geologic development through time , search for sprightliness , and research with robots and world in the time to come , " the scientist enounce in astatement .
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A closer look at the site where the volcano was discovered on Mars.
Spacecraft orbiting Mars have been inadvertently project the vent ever sinceNASA’sMariner 9was sent to the Red Planet in 1971 . However , the vent is so deeply eat away that it has slipped under the microwave radar , until now .
" We were examining the geology of an area where we had found the remains of a glacier last year when we realized we were inside a huge and deeply eroded volcano , " project leaderPascal Lee , a planetary scientist with the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence ( SETI ) Institute and the Mars Institute base at NASA Ames Research Center , say in the command .
The volcano , which has yet to be formally named , is located in one of Mars ' most iconic neighborhood , at the boundary between themaze - like Noctis Labyrinthus , meaning " labyrinth of the night , " and the mammoth canon ofValles Marineris , or Mariner Valley . The volcano is conceive to have been dynamic from ancient times until relatively recently , give its " gigantic size " and " complex modification chronicle , " the team say .
The volcano has a central summit sphere marked by raised , flattened area anticipate mesas , which shape an electric discharge shape , sloping downwards . The side around the mesas spread for 140 mile ( 225 km ) in different way . Near the plaza of the volcano , there appear to be the remains of a fall in volcanic crater that would have once host a lava lake . There are also the remains of lava menstruum , as well as volcanic and hydrated mineral deposits , around the edge of the vent .
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Many questions about the volcano remain , including exactly how long it has been active and whether it still is . If the volcano has been combat-ready for a long time , it ’s possible that the combination of sustained warmth and piss from the ice sheet below the volcano may have created the perfect term to suffer life , the generator said .
The findings have yet to be put out in a peer - reviewed journal . In the meantime , further details of the discovery can be record in asummary documentfrom the group discussion .
