César Menor Salván
Astrobiologist and lecturer of Biochemistry at the University of Alcalá
Although the presence of ice on Mars is not something very new, the presence of an ice mass of this size (the authors conclude that it may be equivalent to between one and a half and three meters of water thickness) and in a location, the Medusae Fossae Formation, which is interesting for future missions, is great news.
This water could be essential for hypothetical future manned missions to Mars but, leaving aside what is still science fiction, the analysis of these ices may yield interesting data about the evolution of the planet (climates, atmospheric compositions), as ices often trap such things as gas bubbles, dust particles, as well as salts and potential organic compounds.
It should be cautioned that the fact that there is an ice-rich formation does not imply anything about potential life on Mars. That is, the fact that there is ice or water does not mean that life originated or that there is life, nor does it imply that there are 'microorganisms' trapped in the ice, as occurs in terrestrial ice masses. Water is a necessary condition for life, but not sufficient.