NASA has revealed the clearest signs of life on Mars ever after making an incredible rover discovery.
Evidence of ancient alien microbes have been uncovered in a dry river channel formed roughly 3.7 billion years ago, scientists reported Wednesday.
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A sample obtained by Nasa’s Perseverance rover found sediment on the bottom of the ancient Neretva Vallis lake which points towards potential signs of ancient microbial life, according to scientists.
Researchers say the rocks contain tiny dark specks which are less than a millimetre in length and have been nicknamed “poppy seeds”.
Other sediments found contain larger dark-rimmed rosettes with lighter centres – dubbed “leopard spots”.
Both speckles are said to be rich in iron and phosphorus.
These chemicals can form when tiny microbes break down organic material – a sign of life back down on Earth.
Scientists also found vein-like structures believed to be white calcium sulfate.
Between these veins sat a material with a reddish color suggesting the presence of hematite – one of the minerals which gives Mars its distinctive colour.
The age of the samples collected by Perseverance are estimated to be aged somewhere between 3.5 to 3.7 billion years old.
Each of the rocks are now due to be taken for in-depth analysis.
They are sealed inside Perseverance along with a number of rock cores awaiting a potential trip back to Earth.
The Perseverance – the same size as a standard car – has been roaming Mars since 2021.
It carries a drill to penetrate rocks and tubes to hold the samples gathered from places judged most suitable for hosting life billions of years ago.
The discovery is one of the best pieces of evidence to date about the possibility that Mars once harbored life.
Sean Duffy, the acting Nasa administrator, said: “A year ago, we thought we found what we believe to be signs of microbial life on the Mars surface.
“We put it out to our scientific friends to pressure test it, to analyse it – did we get this right? Do we think this is a sign of ancient life on Mars?
“After a year of review, they’ve come back and they said: ‘Listen, we can’t find another explanation.’
“So, this very well could be the clearest sign of life that we’ve ever found on Mars.”
One other potential reason for the discovery may be due to chemical processes which have taken place on Mars over millions of years.
Mars facts
Here’s what you need to know about the Red Planet…
- Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun
- It is named after the Roman god of war
- The landmass of Mars is very similar to Earth but due to the difference in gravity you could jump three times higher there than you can here
- Mars is mountainous and hosts the tallest mountain known in the Solar System called Olympus Mons, which is three times higher than Everest
- Mars is considered to be the second most habitable planet after Earth
- It takes the planet 687 Earth days to orbit the Sun
- So far, there has been 39 missions to Mars but only 16 of these have been successful
This would, in theory, create similar rock forms which are made up from the same elements.
But experts believe the reactions appear to have occurred at cool temperatures – potentially pointing towards a more biological origin to the sediment.
Professor Sanjeev Gupta of Imperial College London, co-author of the study, added: “It’s not a slam dunk by any means. But this is the most exciting evidence so far.
“For the first time, we have features that can be explained by biological processes.”
It comes a year after the Perseverance rover also uncovered what appeared to be a grisly, sun-scorched human face half-buried in the sand.
An image taken by the rover last September appears to show a sandy face with a large brow bone, nostrils and a sloping mouth.
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