Mars The eternal mystery of whether microbial life exists on Mars was left unanswered in 1976 by the Viking probes, which produced confusing results. Since then, other missions have attempted to determine whether the components necessary for life as we understand it are present on Mars. In 2011, what appeared to be seasonal flows of brine were detected trickling down the Martian slopes, but subsequent studies have concluded that this was probably just dry sand. The main reason is the presence of a large liquid lake beneath the ice at