Scientists found a mysterious crater on the surface of planet Mars which is funnel-shaped. It is said that such crater could serve as ingredients for alien life.
Studies show that the 1,400 ft and 4 miles wide Hellas depression, which was created by a volcano below a glacier, is perfect for microbes to grow and develop. This creates a wet, warm and nutrient rich environment that could allow the growth of living matters, says scientists.
The depression found was inside a big crater of the Hellas basin of Mars. Moreover, ancient glacial deposits surround the said depression.
Astronomers were not able to confirm whether this depression was due to the creation of a meteor impact or a volcano according to a report in The Sun.
On the other hand, there is a new research which suggests that Hellas depression could be studied to find out extraterrestrial life. A research associate at the University of Texas Institute for Geophysics named Joseph Levy said that the depression caught their attention because it looks weird.
He further said that, "They're concentrically fractured so they look like a bullseye. That can be a very diagnostic pattern you see in Earth materials."
The first images of the Hellas depression was taken by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter in 2009. The photos showed the Hellas depression having crack-like features.
At first, Levy thought that it was like ice cauldrons similar to what is seen in Earth. Ice cauldrons are formed when volcanos erupt under an ice sheet most especially in places like Greenland and Iceland.
Levy further explained that this site could be a host of habitability because it has heat, water and nutrients -- ingredients that are essential for living.
The formations were studied only this year because the boffins have just acquired pairs of high-definition stereoscopic images to show a more detailed structure in 3D according to a report in Science Alert.
Finally, Levy explained that such image surprised them and led them to thinking if melting occurred in the center of the Hellas depression and it resulted to the removal of the ice and the filling of stuff from the sides.