(NewsNation) — Unusual chemical compounds found on rocks on Mars could be a sign that life once existed on the red planet, though researchers have cautioned that the evidence is far from conclusive.
NASA announced new evidence Wednesday that builds on previously discovered minerals, suggesting that life, in the form of microbes, may have been present on Mars at some point in time.
The evidence comes from some unusual marks found on rocks near the Jezero crater, which was once a lake, making it a likely place for scientists to find evidence of any life that might have once existed on our celestial neighbor.
Last year, the Perseverance rover found a rock with unusual features in an area known as Bright Angel. The rocks featured what scientists nicknamed poppy seeds, tiny dark specks containing vivianite, and leopard spots, dark rings of vivianite surrounding white areas containing greigite.
The poppy seeds and leopard spots are significant because on Earth, both vivianite and greigite are considered telltale signs of ancient microbial activity.
Microbial activity isn’t the only way for those minerals to be formed, however. They can also be created through reactions that require temperatures above 250 degrees.
Based on current analysis, it doesn’t appear that the rock from Bright Angel was heated to high enough temperatures for that chemical reaction to occur, but scientists still need more evidence to be able to determine if life once existed on Mars.
On Wednesday, NASA announced discoveries from two sites, one named Masonic Temple and another called Sapphire Canyon, located in the Bright Angel formation.
These rocks contain tiny, green-toned specks of chemically reduced iron phosphate and iron sulfide minerals. Like the poppy seeds and leopard spots, the green flecks could be linked to biological activity.
The distribution of green flecks is uneven and concentrated near organic compounds, which is another mark in favor of possible life. But it’s still not enough to conclusively prove that life was present on Mars.
To draw more concrete conclusions, scientists need to bring samples collected by Perseverance back to Earth for hands-on examination. Unfortunately, that may not happen, as the federal budget proposed by President Donald Trump cut funding for the Mars Sample Return Program.
If Congress slashes funding for that program, the Perseverance samples will be stranded on Mars, and researchers will be left trying to puzzle out the mystery of Martian life — or lack thereof — from afar.