Martian Butterfly: 20 KM Wide Crater On Mars, Astronomers Reveal the Mystery?

The harsh surface of the Red Planet now has a massive butterfly. The radius of this crater is around 20 km. It looks like a massive creature is clinging to the surface of Mars at first glance. Its high resolution pictures left scientists speechless.

The unusual formation in the Idaeus Fossae region, inside the northern lowlands of the planet, is seen in the breathtaking photograph taken by the Mars Express orbiter, which has been studying Martian landscapes since its 2003 launch.

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According to the ESA, the unusual and unique shapes seen here, the butterfly’s body, the main crater itself, is unusually oval in form and the wings are irregular, are a result of the space rock that created this Martian butterfly coming in at a low, shallow angle. As a result, there were two enormous wings and a large pit in the center. When seen from above, it has this appearance because of this.

The soil and rocks behaved like fluidized material as a result of the ice melting. The debris surrounding the crater thus looks like frozen mud rather than solid stones. This discovery indicates that there may have previously been a vast ice or water reservoir in this region of Mars.

An additional unexpected discovery from researching this crater is that the butterfly-shaped wing debris is actually rather smooth and rounded. This is evidence, according to scientists, that there was ice or water under the surface at the time of the strike. The ice hidden beneath the earth melted as a result of the heat produced by the tremendous impact of the rock.