A new study suggests the search for usable water on Mars may soon rely on an unexpected tool: drones equipped with radar, flying just above the surface to peer underground in ways orbiters cannot.
Researchers led by the University of Arizona have shown that drone-mounted ground-penetrating radar can map buried glaciers on Earth in remarkable detail, offering a blueprint for how similar techniques could be used on Mars. The work focuses on glaciers in Alaska and Wyoming that closely resemble debris-covered ice deposits identified on the Red Planet, according to a statement from the university.
