Scientists examining a region of Mars that has a striking similarity with Hawaii have developed a theory about the area’s volcanic past that could be key in determining the planet’s climatic history.

The team, led by Don Hood, a geology and geophysics doctoral candidate at Louisiana State University, analyzed the geography and mineralogy of a high-elevation area called Greater Thaumasia. They also studied the chemistry of the area using a gamma ray spectrometer on the Mars Odyssey Orbiter.

According to the scientists, Greater Thaumasia, which is marked by several shield volcanoes similar to those in Hawaii, was likely created by a series of volcanic events. The findings were published in the Journal of Geophysical Research- Planets.

The scientists found the chemical composition in the region changed as silica and water increased and potassium decreased.

“The chemical composition shifting is the key progression that tells us that this environment was most likely shaped by a series of volcanic events that continually erupted from a changing mantle composition,” Hood said in a news release Wednesday.

The team — which included researchers from Stony Brook University in New York, the University of Tokyo and Lehigh University in Pennsylvania — found, via geochemical analyses, evidence of explosive volcanic activity in the form of sulfur likely deposited in the form of volcanic ash.

Explosive eruptions emit gas that can stay in the atmosphere and cause global cooling and warming.

“Whether there was explosive volcanism on Mars and how much of it there was is an important question in terms of finding out what the past climate was like,” Hood said.