A spotty, vein-filled rock found by a Nasa rover on Mars contains features that suggest it may have hosted microbial life billions of years ago. The a

Nasa rover discovery hints at ancient microbial life on Mars

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2024-07-26 13:30:07

A spotty, vein-filled rock found by a Nasa rover on Mars contains features that suggest it may have hosted microbial life billions of years ago.

The arrowhead-shaped rock, named Cheyava Falls, was discovered by Nasa’s Perseverance rover on 21 July as it trundled along the northern edge of Neretva Vallis, an ancient river valley carved by water flowing into the red planet’s Jezero crater.

Analysis of the 3ft by 2ft rock revealed signs of organic material, intriguing surface spots similar to those associated with fossilised microbes on Earth and evidence that water once passed through the rock, the agency said.

Ken Farley, the project scientist on the mission at the California Institute of Technology, said Cheyava Falls was “the most puzzling, complex and potentially important rock yet investigated by Perseverance”, though the team make clear that non-biological processes may have given rise to the features.

“On the one hand, we have our first compelling detection of organic material, distinctive colourful spots indicative of chemical reactions that microbial life could use as an energy source, and clear evidence that water, necessary for life, once passed through the rock,” Farley said.