Mars once featured sun-soaked, sandy beaches with gentle, lapping waves from an ancient ocean, a new study suggests. Why it matters: The research marks the "clearest evidence yet" that the Red Planet once contained a major body of water and a more livable environment for life,

The evidence comes from data collected by China’s Zhurong Mars rover, which landed in the Utopia Planitia region of Mars in 2021. Unlike other rovers traversing the planet, Zhurong arrived with high- and low-frequency radar systems that allow it to conduct ground-penetrating scans of the Martian subsurface.

Data from China's Zhurong rover on Mars suggests an ancient ocean and strengthens evidence that the planet was once warm, wet, and habitable.