Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. In this Mars Global Surveyor image of the Martian surface just south of Schiaparelli crater , dark lines appear to criss-cross light colored depressions. One tantalizing possibility is simply that the feature near the center is similar to a dried-up lake bed on planet Earth, where light colored mineral deposits are left as water evaporates and cracks are produced as the ground dries. Recently announced results from the Mars Pathfinder mission also point to a Martian past which included a denser atmosphere and surface water - conditions which could have supported life .
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