Signs of life on Mars may be hidden in newly discovered “tanky” multi-layered rocks.
Laminated rocks may contain evidence of liquid water activity on ancient Mars. These impressively layered Martian rocks could be the next sampling target for the Perseverance rover.
Perseverance recently captured some beautiful photos of the layered rocks in the Jezero Crater on Mars, and mission team members shared two of the photos on Twitter on November 4, Space reported. .
“Sampling these layers! I’m taking out my abrasive tool to see inside. Layered rocks like these often form in water and can hold clues to their environment. Take a look. whether this is another good site for a Mars sampling mission,” members of the rover group wrote on Twitter.Sampling is one of Perseverance’s core goals after it landed on the floor of Jezero Crater on Mars on February 18. The rover aims to collect several dozen tubes filled with pristine samples of Mars. They will be returned to Earth in a joint operation by the European Space Agency and NASA, perhaps as early as 2031.
Scientists in laboratories around the world will then analyze the samples, looking for signs of life on ancient Mars and clues to how the red planet has evolved over time.
So far, Perseverance has collected two samples. NASA’s rover is also searching for evidence of life in Jezero Crater and characterizing the geology of the area, among other missions.
Perseverance only recently started working again after a short break because of the Sun conjunction cycle (Earth and Mars move to opposite sides of the Sun) – the time period when the Sun blocks Mars. out of Earth’s view, disrupting interplanetary communications for a few weeks.
Images of new rock layers returned to Earth over a week ago, suggesting that this could be the next sampling area for Perseverance.Valuable background for the layered rocks can be provided by the Mars Helicopter Ingenuity – Perseverance’s partner -. Ingenuity also paused operations during the solar conjunction, but returned on October 24, completing its 14th Mars flight.
It seems that the Mars rover Perseverance hasn’t moved very far since the Sun conjunction ended, as its distance on Mars remains 2.67km – unchanged from its first time. could send pictures back to Earth at the end of last month.
The expedition team often pauses travel activities to conduct scientific research at potentially interesting sites, such as the multi-layered rocks Perseverance is exploring.
