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In other parts of this section dedicated to facts about ice, you will read about ice on earth and ice in the universe but have you heard of water ice on Mars? Yes. Like the Earth, Mars has two polar ice caps,
each one expanding in winter and shrinking in summer and scientists
believe there is at least some water ice in these caps, though just
how much is not yet known. If this water ice could somehow be researched,
it would present vital clues to the history of Mars. This had been one
of the aims of NASA's Mars Polar Lander craft which sadly disappeared
in December 1999. Another similarity that Mars bears to the Earth is
that the planet's climate may be quite different in each of its polar
regions. Whilst the north ice cap sits on rocky plains the south ice
cap on Mars is a distinctive, geological feature - indicative that different
climatic conditions prevail.
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