A Glimpse of Martian Life?
The NASA Perseverance rover has made a groundbreaking discovery on Mars, finding a rock that could potentially hold signs of life. The rock, nicknamed “Cheyava Falls” after a Grand Canyon waterfall, measures about one meter by 0.6 meters and has been found in the mouth of the Jezero crater, which was once a lake 3.5 billion years ago.
Unlocking the Secrets of the Rock
The rover’s instrument SHERLOC detected organic compounds between the whitish veins of calcium sulfate running through the rock, which could indicate that water once flowed through the rock. The rover’s instrument PIXL then captured tiny leopard-like spots containing iron and phosphate, which have not been found together on Mars before.
A Scientific Breakthrough
“This is the closest we’ve come to tangible evidence that there once was life on Mars,” said David Arge Klevang, an associate professor at Denmark’s Technology University. The discovery of these three elements together is often seen as a sign of life. However, scientists note that the discovery of olivine crystals may suggest a non-biological origin for the spots.
The Next Steps
While the Perseverance rover has made significant progress, scientists acknowledge that to fully understand the significance of the discovery, the rock sample needs to be brought back to Earth for analysis. This is unlikely to happen before the 2030s, but if confirmed, it would mean that life has been found on two planets in our solar system, raising questions about its potential existence elsewhere in the universe.
SOURCE: Ref Image from Global Village Space
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