Mars was warm enough to sustain lakes three billion years ago during the Hesperian Epoch, a period that was previously thought to be too cold and arid to sustain water on the surface, suggested a research published this January in the journal Geology. Dr Nicholas Warner, from the Department of Earth Science Engineering, said: “Most of the research on Mars has focused on its early history and the recent past. Scientists had largely overlooked the Hesperian Epoch as it was thought that Mars was then a frozen wasteland. Excitingly, our study now shows that this middle period in Mars’ history was much more dynamic than we previously imagined.”

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