Possible Indicator of Ancient Martian Life

Produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute’s Office of Public Outreach in collaboration with NASA’s Universe of Learning partners: Caltech/IPAC, Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, and NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Video imagery:

·        NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover selfie image with Cheyava Falls rock: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

·        Detail, Cheyava Falls rock: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

·        Illustration of CoLD scale: NASA/Aaron Gronstal

Music from Music for Non-Profits

(DESCRIPTION)

Photos of various celestial bodies, including planets, stars, and galaxies. Title: News From the Universe.

 

(SPEECH)

[COSMIC MUSIC]

 

(DESCRIPTION)

Text: Possible indicator of ancient Martian life. August 9, 2024. A rover's camera turns on the surface of Mars. Text: In an ancient Martian riverbed, NASA's Perseverance rover has found an intriguing rock with features never seen before on the Red Planet. The surface of Mars is hilly, brown, and cluttered with rocks.

 

(SPEECH)

 

(DESCRIPTION)

Text: Between two veins of white calcium sulfate, there are dozens of irregularly shaped, millimeter-size off-white splotches, each ringed with black material. An up-close photo of the material.

 

Text: On Earth, these types of features are often associated with the fossilized record of microbes living the subsurface, but there are other possibilities as well.

 

The features could also be the result of chemical reactions that are not associated with life, but instead were created by different materials moving through the riverbed over time.

 

A graphic labeled CoLD SCALE. Scientists line up on a set of stairs, labelled from the bottom to top, 1, Detect possible signal, 2, Rule out contamination, 3, Make sure biology is possible, 4, Rule out non-biology, 5, Additional independent signal, 6, Rule out other hypotheses, 7, Independent Confirmation. Text: Scientists have a high bar and multi-step process for confirming evidence of life. This Martian rock is currently at step number one: Detect possible signal.

 

Further analysis of this rock will not be possible without bringing it to a laboratory on Earth.

 

Meanwhile, Perseverance is continuing to explore, sample, and learn as much as possible.

 

This news was brought to you in part by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA.