Buried glaciers that could water the first Martian colony.
Deuteronilus Mensae is a region of flat-topped mesas and valleys along the Martian dichotomy boundary, filled with debris-covered glaciers. Radar shows these deposits are mostly water ice, making it a leading candidate for the first crewed landing.
Claim your plot here →Deuteronilus Mensae sits along the great boundary where the cratered southern highlands drop to the smooth northern lowlands. Between its mesas and buttes lie lobate flows that orbital radar has confirmed are debris-covered glaciers — sheets of nearly pure water ice hidden under a thin protective layer of rock.
That ice is why the region matters for the future. Water means drinking supply, breathable oxygen and rocket fuel, all producible on-site. NASA studies repeatedly rank Deuteronilus among the strongest candidates for the first human landing, since crews could tap glaciers only meters below the surface.
Unlike Mars' polar ice caps, Deuteronilus offers accessible water ice at mid-latitudes where sunlight and temperatures are far friendlier to a crew.