A Chinese rover that has been exploring Mars’ northern hemisphere for more than three years has found evidence to suggest that this region was once covered by a gigantic ocean. This huge body of water could have spread out over as much as one-third of the planet’s surface, Chinese scientists based in Hong Kong claim, in a newly published study that boosts the long-held theory that Mars was once a wet planet that could conceivably have supported life. A Giant Crater with a Giant Sea In May 2021 the Chinese rover Zhurong, carried by its orbital lander Tianwan-1, landed on Mars in the southern Utopia Planitia region, which is located in the planet’s northern lowlands. This area is part of one of the solar system’s largest impact craters, which has a diameter exceeding 2,000 miles (3,200 kilometers). This would have given it the required topography to have maintained an ocean 3.7 billion years ago, when the study authors believe this sea existed. Spiders From Mars? Strange Formations Spotted at Martian Pole Water on Mars Provides Hope for Human Habitation Read moreSection: NewsScience & SpaceRead Later