In the study published in Nature Astronomy, the scientists explained that the clay deposits rich in minerals formed when Mars ...

What's notably strange is the Hellas Basin’s darkness, especially when you consider that the sun is beaming directly down on it — something that caught even NASA scientists off guard.

Hellas Basin appears darker due to atmospheric effects. NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI and Mars JWST/GTO team NASA released a graphic showing what Webb could see in two different wavelengths of infrared light.

Map of Mars with the tropics (±25°) shaded. With sufficient greenhouse warming, the first tree on Mars grows outside the tropics in Hellas Basin.

“The Hellas Basin is a lower altitude, and thus experiences higher air pressure,” said Villanueva, who is also the principal investigator of Mars and Ocean Worlds studies for Webb.

"The Hellas Basin is a lower altitude, and thus experiences higher air pressure," said Villanueva, who is also the principal investigator of Mars and Ocean Worlds studies for Webb.