A team of scientists led by astrobiologist Amy Williams from the University of Florida used NASA's Perseverance rover to collect the first Martian rock samples that could be returned to Earth, which is a step toward looking for evidence that Mars hosted life.
Science Daily reported that the lava rocks were collected from the Jezero crater, which was the chosen study site because of its large river delta that once flowed in an ancient lake. Scientists believe that where there is evidence of water, there is also a possibility that the planet could have supported life billions of years ago.
In this concept illustration provided by NASA, NASA's Perseverance (Mars 2020) rover uses its drill to core a rock sample and will store them in sealed tubes on the planet's surface for future missions to retrieve in the area known as Jezero crater on the planet Mars.
Erosion at Jezero Crater Revealed Lava and Magma Rocks
The Perseverance mission is led by scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) who have been controlling the rover since its arrival on the Red Planet in February 2021. The rover has since then explored the geological makeup of the crater floor using tools onboard that can take pictures and analyze the chemical properties of rocks and the structure in the subsurface.
The team discovered that the crater floor had eroded more than they expected it revealed rocks formed from lava and magma called igneous rocks. Scientists initially thought that the delta rocks would lay on top of igneous rocks, but their discovery suggests that those rocks have been worn away over eons leaving only the igneous rocks behind.
They analyzed the composition of the rocks and stored them inside the rover's storage unit to be returned to Earth in the future. The team found that the lava rocks have been altered by water, which adds to evidence of the watery past of Mars.
"We have organisms on Earth that live in very similar kinds of rocks," Williams said in a statement via EurekAlert! "And the aqueous alteration of the minerals has the potential to record biosignatures."
She explained that these kinds of environments on Earth are places where life thrives and given the recent findings in exploring the Jezero crater, it implies that these once-habitable areas might contain evidence of ancient life.
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Mars Sample Return Mission
NASA teamed up with the European Space Agency (ESA) in planning the return of Martian rock samples to Earth, which is estimated to be around 2033.
According to Newsweek, this plan requires building the first spacecraft that can launch from Earth to the Martian surface and rendezvous with the orbiter that carries the sample back to Earth.
Scientists hope that this ambitious task will give them access to the rock samples to study them in detail, which the rover cannot perform. These studies include identifying the age of the rocks and investigating for signs of ancient life that Mars might have once hosted.
Dating these Martian rock samples will give them important information about the age of the lake as they come from the bottom of the crater that likely predates the river delts.
As an astrobiologist, Williams said that she is excited about what is coming next as the rover continues its exploration. She is one of the long-term planners for the Perseverance mission and helps in the decision-making process as to where to send the rover next and what tests to perform or what samples to prioritize.
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