Mars Perseverance rover finds organic molecules that could indicate life - The Jerusalem Post

NASA's Perseverance rover found signs of organic compounds that could indicate there was once life on Mars or at least an environment hospitable for life, according to a new study published in the peer-reviewed journal Science on Wednesday.

The minerals and possible organic compounds mentioned in the new study were found using SHERLOC, or the Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman & Luminescence for Organics & Chemicals instrument.

The study covers two layers of rocks: the Seitah formation and the Maaz formation, according to Inverse.

We saw many signals that look like they could be organic compounds together with these cool water environment minerals," explained Scheller in a tweet.

While the rover's Mastcam-Z instrument was able to provide strong evidence for a type of river delta called a Gilbert delta, it was unable to find any sedimentary rock which could have preserved ancient signs of life, according to a study published in the peer-reviewed journal Science Advances.

The rover's PIXL instrument (an x-ray fluorescence microscope) found more evidence that the rocks interacted with water, noting that the interaction was either conducted at a relatively low temperature or only took place over a short time or with a small amount of water, according to a study published in the peer-reviewed journal Science Advances.

The interaction with water likely happened over three stages, which each stage having provided "challenges and opportunities for habitability, potential for organic matter production (abiotic or biotic), and preservation of biosignatures.".

The PIXL study noted that materials formed without the presence of life have been detected in Martian meteorites and that the organic material found by Scheller's team was likely made by similar, abiotic processes.

The rocks collected by the rover will be carried off of Mars by the Sample Retrieval Lander which will transfer them to the Earth Return Orbiter, with the rocks expected to land back on Earth in 2033