A MYSTERIOUS rock that fell to Earth from Mars may hold some watery secrets about the Red Planet – and possibly alien life.
The so-called “Black Beauty” meteorite was discovered back in 2011 by unsuspecting nomads exploring the Sahara Desert.
It’s not known when the 320g rock arrived on Earth but the oldest fragment is thought to be 4.5billion years-old.
The sample got the name Black Beauty because of its striking exterior.
Scientists suspect the meteorite – officially known as NWA 7034 – crashed here after a major impact on Mars.
For sometime now they’ve been curious about its contents and studies more than ten years ago have revealed traces of water in it.
BLASTING OFF
Nasa delays first human Moon mission since 1972 by WEEKS after fuel leak
VANISHING ACT
Nasa races to contact lost Mars probe that mysteriously vanished 6 WEEKS ago
But newer technology has helped researchers understand a bit more about the liquid which could be used to unravel the Red Planet’s deepest secrets.
Water is always a major source of interest for experts seeking out evidence of life beyond Earth, as it’s essential for living things as we know it.
New neutron scanning has revealed more about the water, detecting small specks of ancient water are locked inside.
And according to a pre-print research paper, there’s more water than previously believed.
They looked at a fingernail-sized portion, which contained between 0.4 per cent and 0.6 per cent water.
Now they want to try and understand more about it.
Sign up for The Sun Tech newsletter for gadgets, games & more
Hello! I’m Sean Keach, The Sun’s Head of Technology and Science
I’ve been writing about gadgets, games and the future of technology for more than a decade.
During that time I’ve penned thousands of articles, filmed hundreds of videos, talked tech on TV and radio, and travelled around the world to bring you the latest on Apple, Meta, Google, Amazon, Netflix and more.
And I’ve got a weekly newsletter called The Sun Tech that you can read for free every Thursday.
I bring you the latest from the world of tech, including behind-the-scenes action, exclusive content, expert analysis, and plenty of help advice – so please follow along!
A growing amount of evidence suggests Mars was once full of oceans much like Earth, which is why it’s such a focal point for signs of life.
Nasa recently had to give up on a mission to bring back rocks directly from the Red Planet to Earth due to huge costs.
So this latest revelation within the Black Beauty may be our only hope of finding out more about possible life on Mars for quite sometime until a cheaper solution for Nasa can be found.
