The cause of Mars turning into a desert has been revealed

Scientists, with the help of Mars rovers Curiosity and Perseverance, found that Mars has turned into a desert because of the unique features of its geology.

This was reported by the press service of the University of Chicago.

For many years, planetologists could not answer the question of why the Earth was able to maintain comfortable conditions for the origin and existence of life, and Mars quickly lost them.

The missing piece of the puzzle was discovered on the planet’s surface by the Curiosity rover in 2025 – it turned out to be carbonate-rich rocks.

The presence of these sediments indicated the important role of carbonates in the disappearance of both the oceans and the atmosphere of Mars, the basis of which, both in the past and today, is carbon dioxide.

The essence of this feature is that the interaction of warm liquid water and carbon dioxide forms insoluble carbonate deposits.

Such deposits in turn weaken the greenhouse effect and reduce the density of the atmosphere. The rate of this process depends directly on the temperature of the environment.

In the past, Mars has experienced similar cycles, during which periods of wet and warm climate provoked periods of dry and cold climate for tens of millions of years.

As a result, the planet lost almost all of its carbon dioxide and water reserves, finally turning it into a waterless and cold desert.

VIDEO BRIGHT SIDE. Why Mars Became a Lifeless Desert.