Earth's island offers clues for life on Mars

The world's newest island -- formed during a volcanic eruption in the remote Pacific three years ago -- may offer clues to how life potentially developed on Mars, Nasa said yesterday.

The island of Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha'apai rose from the seabed about 65 kilometres northwest of the Tongan capital Nuku'alofa in late 2014-early 2015.

Scientists initially expected the island to wash away within a few months. But Nasa said it had proved more resilient than expected giving scientists a rare chance to study the life cycle of a newly created island.

Jim Garvin, the chief scientist at Nasa's Goddard Space Flight Center, said Mars had many similar volcanic islands that appeared to have been surrounded by water when they were created. Garvin said such spots may be prime locations to look for evidence of past life because they combined a wet environment with heat from volcanic processes.