NASA says this Mars rock carries signs of possible life. Here is what should happen after that

For a period of four years, NASA’s perseverance has searched for possible signs of old life on the surface of Mars. I have found countless features on her trips, including a rock with strange spots, which were discovered inside Mars Jezero. Descipsy “Cheyava Falls”, discovery 2024 It caught the attention of scientists on the groundAnd its sites also indicated that it may contain a potential vital signature – a sign of life.

Rover went to work. The robot analyzed the composition of the rock and surface chemistry, then extracted a core called “Valley of the Ruby”.

Her hard work seems to be fruitful. On Wednesday, NASA scientists dropped the bomb: Shava Falls In fact, you may be the most clear sign of the past life that has been found on Mars.

“We have almost left the hole. This was the last group of sedimentary rocks that we might have been looking at in the mission,” Joel Horowitz, the planetary scientist at Stone Brock University, told Gizmodo. He is the main author in a new study showing the results published in nature.

It was very surprising that this was the place where the potential vital areas of the rock jumped to us and said: “Hey, look here! “

Among the 30 samples of rocks and rigioliths that have been collected over the past four years, none of them have appeared more as evidence of ancient life on Mars more than this. But in reality, the biological in perfection emphasizes depends on the return of this sample to the ground. At stake is one of the most permanent questions in our world: Is life really on Earth alone?

“I don’t think we will do this design without that sample in our hands,” said Horowitz.

Possible biomedic issue

Cheyava Falls carries small black spots called NASA scientists “poppy seeds”, which are punctuated by “Fahd” larger stains. These features have suggested to Horwitz and his colleagues that chemical reactions occurred at a time when these deposits were deposited.

Checking analysis found that Cheyava Falls are rich in organic carbon, sulfur, oxidized iron (rust) and phosphorous. This mixture of chemical compounds could have provided a potential source of energy for old microbes, but researchers decided to investigate the rock.

Using the Pixl tool (planetary planetary tool for the stone chemistry of X-ray) to draw a map of the rock surface chemistry, they revealed a distinct pattern of minerals arranged on the fronts of reaction-contact points where chemical and physical reactions-which are compatible with Leopard stains. These sites also carried signatures of iron -rich minerals, Viviannett and Griegit.

On Earth, these minerals are often secondary products that arise from the metabolism of organic materials, according to Horwitz. More importantly, it is also possible to form stains on Shava through another process, probably through the Earth’s thermal heating during the early stages of the formation of the rock. “But there is no real evidence that the rocks have been largely heated,” Horwitz said.

Researchers are far from excluding these possible interpretations –140 million miles awayOn average, in fact.

“Decision between the chemical assets that depend on purely life and chemical, needs laboratory analyzes of the sapphire -owned sample,“ Mario Parente, Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering at UMASS AmHERST, for Gizmodo. The father did not participate in the study, however Participate in his authorship A similar point of view on the results.

Why should the sapphire come to Earth

Pervy said that laboratory -based analyzes are “necessary” to answer the main questions that can confirm whether this is actually a potential vitality. He explained that technologies such as identifying nanoparticles and highly accurate chemical appointment for the sapphire sample can determine whether they really contain Vivianite, Greigite and carbon closely intertwined with these minerals.

In addition, the analog analysis will be able to discover patterns called “fractures” that are intimate signs of microbial activity. “The isotopes are one of the clearest ways to separate biology from geology,” said Barry. “I think these measurements may be very clear to the question,” Horwitz agreed.

However, there is a major obstacle in the way of such an endeavor: as things stand, NASA has no strong plans to go to Mars to recover Sapphire Canyon – or any of the perseverance samples of this issue. The Agency is working with the European Space Agency to develop a campaign to return a multi -sample sample to recover samples, but the escalating costs and complexity have stopped progressing.

The White House budget proposal for the fiscal year 2026, which was issued in May, threatened to reduce the financing of the voltage, but in July, the Sub -Committee for Trade Sciences in the House of Representatives moved to allocate $ 300 million to the program. This bill is still running, and it is still completely possible to cancel tasks.

“I would like to hate to see us not to repeat the samples,” Horwitz said. After spent more than 20 years working in the missions of March Rover, he puts what is at stake: “This was the incredibly paid program to reach this goal of trying to understand whether Mars is safe or not.”

“With the data that we have from The Rover, we will have this confusing idea that says,” perhaps, “but we cannot answer the question.”