Mars has been making headlines numerous time over the past few months, with the discovery of briny water just a couple of weeks ago scientist have been raving to discuss more about the planet's environment.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Mars rover, Curiosity sent images back in 2013 of round pebbles that reminded NASA scientists of pebbles found in Earths river bed.
The stones were discovered near the landing site of Curiosity in Gale Center. Although it did look the same the scientists were unable to release further information due to the fact that there were still no clear answers whether Mars did house water on the planet.
The scientist had to know how the rocks came to be 'shredded' or molded to smooth round pebble rocks. They also had to measure the mass of the stones.
To do this the team of scientists rolled limestone fragments in a drum and then studied and recorded the change in mass and shape of those stones.
They also checked rocks in Mountain Rivers in Puerto Rico and sediment deposits at the mouth of a New Mexico canyon.
Through this the scientists were able to gather data that pointed out that the Martian stones lost one-fifth of their volume during their journey through the river bed.
The rocks had smooth surface due to the fact that they were able to travel up to 50 km from their origin. This matches with past suggestions that the rocks came from the rim of Gale Center 30 km away.
The pebbles are a reflection of what the Martian system was in the past. It could also be used to reconstruct ancient environments on Earth as well as other water-bearing heavenly bodies.
If you go to the beach, natural history is written underneath your feet. There is a code you can read to begin to understand that history," Gábor Domokos, a mathematician at Budapest University of Technology and Economics, co-author of the study, said.
The shape of stones can tell you a lot about the past history of a place, Domokos added.
