from NASA Perseverance Mars Wanderer discovered a clear tone never seen before Boulder in a dark field stonesa finding that sheds new light at the red planetin geology.
The rover encountered the rock while crossing Neretva Vallis, a region believed to be contain evidence of an ancient river that existed billions of years ago.
Perseverance He changed course to avoid rough terrain, passing through a dune field to reach a hill called Mount Washburn.
Images taken by the rover along its new path show that the hill is covered in rocks, some of which NASA described as “a type never observed before on Mars.”
One of the stones, about 18 inches in diameter and 14 inches high, was a peculiarly light-toned rock in a field of darker stones.
The researchers said the rock is “in a league of its own” among Martian rocks.
At the base of the new site, the rover also spotted light-hued rock outcrops that likely represent ancient rocks exposed by river erosion or sediments that filled the channel.
“The diversity of textures and compositions at Mount Washburn was an exciting discovery for the team, as these rocks represent a collection of geological gifts brought from the crater rim and potentially beyond,” said Brad Garczynski, co-leader of the Perseverance mission. said in a statement.
“But among all these different rocks, there was one that really caught our attention.”
The strange rock, dubbed Atoko Point, was found to be composed of the minerals pyroxene and feldspar by instruments aboard the rover.
Some scientists suspect that these minerals likely came from magma beneath the Martian surface.
Others say it may have been produced in a different part of Mars and moved along the ancient river channel to its current location.
“In any case, the team believes that although Atoko is the first of its kind they have ever seen, it will not be the last,” NASA said.
The recent discovery was made as the Perseverance rover searches for deposits containing the minerals carbonate and olivine in a region of Mars called the “Margin Unit.”
These minerals are of interest to researchers as they are known to encapsulate remnants of the past over long periods of time, meaning there is a much greater likelihood of finding signs of ancient alien life on Mars in these deposits.
The rover is currently evaluating whether a rock sample should be collected in this region, according to NASA.
