Evidence Points to Salt Glaciers on Mercury – A Scientific Breakthrough Reveals

Overview

Driven by curiosity about our cosmic companions, scientists are on an unyielding quest to unravel whether we’re the sole inhabitants of the universe. This pursuit has sparked an extraordinary wave of discoveries beyond our solar system, in planets like Mercury or Mars or Dwarf Planets like Eris, with the confirmation of thousands of exoplanets—worlds that orbit stars outside our familiar celestial neighbourhood.

In a significant breakthrough, researchers have stumbled upon signs pointing to possible salt glaciers on Mercury, the blistering hot celestial body nearest to the Sun. This astonishing revelation suggests that conditions akin to those on Earth may have existed or still endure in our solar system’s harshest corners. 

Mercury-The smallest planet

Mercury, the tiniest member of our solar system and the closest to the Sun, is just a tad larger than our Moon. Its surface is pockmarked with thousands of impact craters, telling tales of cosmic collisions.

For an intrepid visitor standing on Mercury’s surface, the Sun would command the sky, ballooning to over three times its Earthly appearance, casting a brilliant light that’s a staggering 11 times brighter.

Surprising as it may be, Mercury, despite its proximity to the Sun, relinquishes the title of the hottest planet to its neighbour, Venus, enveloped in a dense atmospheric blanket. However, Mercury is the fastest on the planetary track, completing a swift orbit around the Sun in just 88 Earth days—no wonder the planet is aptly named after the swift-footed Roman god.

More about the discovery

Salt Glaciers in Mercury?

Researchers from the Planetary Science Institute (PSI) propose a fascinating proposition—suggesting that the salt glaciers discovered on Mercury might offer the right conditions for life to flourish. This idea parallels specific extreme environments on Earth, where microbial life has persisted against the odds. 

Alexis Rodriguez, the lead author of the paper titled “Mercury’s Hidden Past: Revealing a Volatile-Dominated Layer through Glacier-like Features and Chaotic Terrains” in the Planetary Science Journal, stated that their discovery complements recent research indicating nitrogen glaciers on Pluto. 

What does this imply?

This implies that glaciation spans the hottest to the coldest reaches within our Solar System. Rodriguez emphasised the significance of these locations, highlighting that they identify volatile-rich exposures across various planetary landscapes.

According to co-author Travis, these Mercurian glaciers, unlike those on Earth, stem from Volatile Rich Layers (VRLs) hidden deep beneath the surface, brought to light by asteroid impacts. Their models strongly support the idea that the glaciers were formed by the flow of salt and, remarkably, retained volatiles for a period exceeding 1 billion years after their formation.

The paper is co-authored by PSI scientists Deborah Domingue, Bryan Travis, Jeffrey S. Kargel, Oleg Abramov, John Weirich, Nicholas Castle, and Frank Chuang.

Why is this discovery significant?

Pursuing extraterrestrial life is complex and multifaceted, employing diverse strategies and techniques. While casting their gaze far beyond, scientists also turn their attention closer to home, meticulously studying the nooks and crannies of our solar system.

Glaciers, those familiar frozen landscapes from childhood, are iconic features of Earth, typically associated with the Arctic, Antarctic, or towering mountain slopes covered in snow and ice.

Yet, these icy wonders hold more mysteries than we might have imagined, potentially holding the key to understanding the habitability of planets.

Recent scientific discoveries have challenged our conventional understanding of glaciers, uncovering unexpected variations in surprising locations. 

Two studies this year revealed glaciers in opposite corners of our Solar System: on Mercury, where surface temperatures soar high enough to liquefy lead, and on Eris, a dwarf planet residing three times farther from the Sun than Pluto, with a surface temperature just a few degrees Celsius above absolute zero.

The findings from these distant icy realms prompt a reassessment of how certain planets may foster conditions conducive to life, adding layers to an already intricate narrative.

Mercury’s glaciers are composed of salt, and Eris’s glaciers reside beneath its surface in a mantle of “squishy” ice. These unconventional discoveries challenge our preconceived notions and open new chapters in exploring planetary habitability.