NASA Robot Unexpectedly Found an 80-Centimeter Rock on Mars That Most Likely Wasn’t From the Planet
Billions of years ago, the Red Planet was not what it is today. Once, it bubbled and rippled with frothy waves, just like the Earth. But when swirling masses of gas and dust were accumulated by gravity to form the planets, Earth succeeded in developing a strong magnetic field, while Mars remained devoid of magnetic security. Over the following years, fierce solar winds took advantage of Mars’ weak boundary and ripped its soil, seething away the water and leaving a parched landmass. But as NASA scientists do, they set their eyes upon this landmass to know what stole away the conditions Mars needed to sustain life. Say hello to Perseverance Rover. Recently, the rover sent information about an ancient rock that holds valuable hints about life existing on Mars, ScienceAlert reports.
Perseverance is one of the most decorated space robots designed by NASA engineers. With a state-of-the-art helicopter strapped to its belly, tiny cameras studded across its body, sharp robotic arms, and a mini laboratory where it stows away rock samples, Perseverance is doing exactly what its name suggests. Ever since it landed on Mars on February 18, 2021, with its wheels clanking for the first time on the Martian soil and its drills whirring, the space probe has collected precious information from our sister planet, revealing stories that continue to fascinate those who listen.
The key site NASA scientists are interested in exploring, the one where Perseverance also made its landing, is Jezero Crater. It is believed that this crater was once an ancient lake, the evidence of which has been observed in several float rocks, sand ripples, and a fan-shaped delta that Perseverance detected. Scientists believe that deep within the layers of reddish soil, this crater holds clues to microbial life. Perseverance has collected numerous rock samples from Mars, which depict potential biosignatures of life, and most recently, a rock that is offering interesting clues about the past existence of life on the planet. Redditors say the rock was tossed away by little aliens travelling in a “magic school bus.” But as far as the human brain can decipher, the story is much more complex.
The rock, nicknamed “Phippsaksla,” was found in the Vernodden area of the 28-mile-wide impact crater. Perseverance used one of its advanced Mastcam-Z cameras fixed to its mast to snap its pictures and send them to the scientists on Earth. The 80-centimeter-wide rock was found to be rich in iron and nickel. And although the major portion of Martian soil is rich in iron, this rock is a bit unusual. Instead of being an ordinary piece of clumped soil, it seems to be a lost fragment of a meteorite that once crashed into Mars and was abandoned here.
According to EBSKO, iron-nickel meteorites are extraterrestrial objects that form under poor oxygen conditions, resulting in unique metallic mineral compositions that do not have direct terrestrial equivalents. These meteorites are usually characterized by a distinguishing Widmanstätten pattern, a unique geometric structure formed when heavy minerals rush to embed themselves in the hearts of molten, heated rocks in the solar system.
Perseverance was likely programmed with all this understanding in mind, for when it stumbled upon Phippsaksla, it cleverly utilized its SuperCam instrument’s lasers and spectrometers to analyze the rock’s chemistry. The robot even collected a small piece of Phippsaklsa and stored it inside the mini lab attached to its belly. Unfortunately, it can’t send back the rock to Earth without further assistance, and another craft would be required to dispatch this fragment. Meanwhile, the complete evolution story of the Red Planet remains a mystery. All hopes are now latched to Perseverance, which is tenaciously riding on the dunes of the red soil, investigating every dab and dot for clues.
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