Science & Tech · Space · 9 hrs ago
Promising Mars rock sample awaits a plan to return it to Earth
NASA’s Perseverance rover collected a small, spotted rock called Sapphire Canyon on Mars.
It came from a valley in Jezero Crater that was shaped by rivers flowing into an ancient lake more than 3 billion years ago.
Scientists consider the sample a possible sign of past life because similar spots on Earth can form when microbes act on buried organic matter.
The spots are only a clue, not proof that life existed on Mars.
Scientists say they need to study the sample on Earth to know more, because the rover does not carry all the instruments needed to settle the question.
NASA canceled its original Mars Sample Return program after concerns about its cost and complexity, and has not announced a new way to bring the samples back.
NASA is exploring simpler options, while China plans a Mars sample-return mission expected to launch in 2028 and aims to retrieve samples in 2031.
NASA’s Perseverance rover collected a Mars rock sample called Sapphire Canyon that scientists say may contain a potential sign of ancient life.
The sample was taken from rocky outcrops beside Neretva Vallis, a valley in Jezero Crater shaped by ancient rivers.
Scientists say they will need the sample on Earth to determine whether it contains evidence of life.
NASA canceled its original Mars Sample Return program after pausing and reassessing it in 2024, and has not announced a clear alternative.
China plans to launch its Tianwen-3 sample-return mission in 2028, with a goal of retrieving a sample in 2031.
- Who
- NASA’s Perseverance rover collected the sample; scientists on its team are studying its significance.
- What
- The rover collected a rock sample called Sapphire Canyon that may be a potential biosignature.
- When
- The sample was collected on Mars; the article does not state when. Perseverance landed in February 2021.
- Where
- Rocky outcrops beside Neretva Vallis in Jezero Crater on Mars.
- Why
- The rock may preserve evidence of ancient microbial life, but scientists say they need to examine it on Earth to know for sure.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Perseverance landed in Jezero Crater to search for rocks shaped or altered by water.
NASA paused and reassessed the Mars Sample Return program before canceling it.
NASA told CNN it was exploring potential sample-return options, including commercial or international contributions.
China’s Tianwen-3 mission is expected to launch.
China is looking to retrieve a sample from Mars.
- Sample name
- Sapphire Canyon
- Sample location
- Rocky outcrops beside Neretva Vallis in Jezero Crater, Mars
- Sample size
- About the size of a chalk stick
- Rover landing
- February 2021
- NASA rover cost
- About $2.4 billion to build and launch
- China’s Tianwen-3
- Expected to launch in 2028; China is looking to retrieve a sample in 2031
What people are saying
This is the first time I think we’ve found something that qualifies as a ‘potential biosignature’ on Mars.
We can keep doing these studies and coming up with these hints, but we’re never going to know for sure until we get those samples back.
While Perseverance’s samples remain safely stored on Mars, NASA is exploring a range of potential return options that could offer simpler and more affordable approaches than the original Mars Sample Return plan, including possible commercial or international contributions.
Sources
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