New study suggests early Mars hosted conditions suitable for life

(Web Desk) - Although scientists are still working to understand what Mars was like in its earliest stages, new research points to the possibility that the planet’s atmosphere could have supported life. The study proposes that volcanic eruptions released sulfur gases that helped warm the planet through a greenhouse effect.

The work, published in Science Advances, was carried out by a research team from The University of Texas at Austin.

To explore the chemistry of ancient Mars, the team analyzed the composition of Martian meteorites and used that information to run more than 40 computer simulations. These models tested different temperatures, chemical conditions, and gas concentrations to estimate how much carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur-based gases early Martian volcanoes may have produced.

Their results challenge earlier climate models that assumed high levels of sulfur dioxide (SO₂). Instead, the simulations indicate that volcanic activity on Mars 3-4 billion years ago likely released large amounts of “reduced” sulfur species, which are highly reactive. These included hydrogen sulfide (H₂S), disulfur (S₂), and possibly sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), a greenhouse gas known for its exceptionally strong warming properties.

Lead author Lucia Bellino, a doctoral student at the UT Jackson School of Geosciences, explained that such conditions could have shaped an unusual environment on early Mars, one that might have been favorable for certain types of life.

“The presence of reduced sulfur may have induced a hazy environment which led to the formation of greenhouse gases, such as SF6, that trap heat and liquid water,” said Bellino. “The degassed sulfur species and redox conditions are also found in hydrothermal systems on Earth that sustain diverse microbial life.”

Previous Mars studies have researched how the release of gases at the surface, often through volcanic eruptions, may have impacted the planet’s atmosphere. In contrast, this study simulated how sulfur changed as it moved throughout geologic processes, including how it separated from other minerals as it was incorporated into magma layers below the planet’s crust.

This is important because it gives a more realistic sense of the chemical state of the gas before it’s released at the surface where it can shape the early climate conditions of Mars.