---
title: "Ancient Magma Oceans of Mars: How InSight Data Rewrites the History of Rocky Planets"
description: "🔴 InSight mission data proves: Mars was once covered by magma oceans! Scientists found an ancient crustal boundary at a depth of 24 km, rewriting the theory of planet formation and changing the criteria for the search for life in the Universe 🪐🌋"
date: 2026-07-02T16:51:59.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/ancient-magma-oceans-of-mars-how-insight-data-rewrites-the-history-of-rocky-planets
tags: []
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# Ancient Magma Oceans of Mars: How InSight Data Rewrites the History of Rocky Planets

![Full disk of Mars with visible craters and dark patches, illustrating ancient volcanic activity and magma oceans](https://xab.info/media/2026/07/02/drevnie-magmaticheskie-okeany-marsa-otkrytie-insight/drevnie-magmaticheskie-okeany-marsa-otkrytie-insight-1.webp)

In July 2026, the scientific community received confirmation of one of the boldest hypotheses regarding the geological past of the Red Planet. A group of planetary scientists, analyzing archival data from the NASA InSight mission, discovered a clear structural boundary within Mars' interior. This finding, published in the journal Nature Astronomy, indicates that during its early history, Mars was covered by global magma oceans.

### The Seismic Key to the Depths: Discovery at the 24 km Mark

The discovery was made possible thanks to the work of the highly sensitive SEIS (Seismic Experiment for Interior Structure) seismometer installed on the InSight lander. The spacecraft, which operated on the Elysium Planitia from November 2018 to December 2022, recorded more than 1,300 marsquakes. Wave impulses from these events allowed scientists to conduct a detailed scan of the lithosphere.

Analysis of the propagation of body seismic waves (P- and S-waves) revealed an anomaly at a depth of 24 kilometers. It is here that the waves changed their speed and diffraction vector. Geophysical modeling showed that this plane separates two fundamentally different layers: an upper crust characterized by high porosity and fracturing, and a denser lower crust.

### Fractional Crystallization and Rock Evolution

The existence of such a sharp boundary is impossible without the process of fractional crystallization. This is a complex physico-chemical mechanism that occurs during the slow cooling of large-scale basins of liquid magma. Data indicates that during the Noachian epoch (approximately 4.1–3.7 billion years ago), Mars experienced a period of global volcanic activity when its surface was flooded with melt.

It was this ancient magma ocean that formed the planet's modern crustal structure. Over time, due to Mars' smaller mass compared to Earth (about 11%), the planet cooled rapidly, and this geological "slice" froze in an unchanging state, preserved to this day.

### Rethinking Habitability Criteria: Lessons for Astrobiology

The results of the study challenge established views on planet formation. For a long time, it was believed that creating a complex, differentiated crust and a stable hydrosphere required a plate tectonics mechanism similar to Earth's. Mars, however, belongs to the class of planets with a "single-plate" lithosphere (stagnant lid regime), where continental drift is absent.

Comparative data demonstrates fundamental differences:

- **Earth:** The crustal boundary (Mohorovičić discontinuity) is located at a depth of 30–50 km, and rock differentiation occurs due to subduction and active tectonics.

- **Mars:** The boundary is fixed at a depth of 24 km, and the separation of layers is caused by the cooling of an ancient magma ocean.

As co-author of the study, Oxford University representative John Wade, notes, proof of the existence of magma basins on Mars changes the paradigm of the search for life. This confirms that small rocky bodies are capable of forming primary conditions for habitability without the involvement of tectonic processes.

### New Horizons in the Search for Exoplanets

This conclusion significantly expands astrobiological criteria. Cosmic objects previously excluded from the list of potentially habitable ones due to their small size or lack of continental drift are now being viewed from a new perspective. They may possess a stable geological foundation necessary for the long-term retention of an atmosphere and liquid compounds on the surface. InSight mission data, thus, not only reveals the secrets of Mars' past but also provides keys to understanding the evolution of rocky planets throughout the Universe.