After six months of effort, an instrument that helps the Mars rover look for potential signs of ancient microbial life has come back online.
Jezero Crater
Posted inAway Teams & Field Reports, Exploration Gear & Tech, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Sample Return, Tricorders & Sensors
Perseverance Astrobiology Droid Crosses An Ancient Martian River Bed To Reach A Science Target
After detouring through a dune field to avoid wheel-rattling boulders, NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover reached its latest area of scientific interest on June 9. The route change not only shortened […]
Posted inAstrogeology, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Tricorders & Sensors
Carving Into Carbonates at Old Faithful Geyser – In Jezero Crater – On Mars
This past week on Mars, Perseverance made a pit stop near Overlook Mountain to abrade a rock called Old Faithful Geyser. This target is situated within the Western side of […]
Posted inExploration Gear & Tech, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Sample Return, Status Report
Mars Astrobiology Rover Perseverance’s Sample Depot Portrait
NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover captured this portrait of its recently completed sample depot using its Mastcam-Z camera on Jan. 31, 2023, the 693rd Martian day, or sol, of the mission. […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Microbiology & Virology, Status Report
Microbialites On The Shore Of Lake Salda In Turkey
The rocks seen here along the shoreline of Lake Salda in Turkey were formed over time by microbes that trap minerals and sediments in the water. These so-called microbialites were […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Mars, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Tricorders & Sensors
Perseverance Sample Has A Good Chance Of Preserving Possible Martian Biosignatures
The 24th sample taken by the six-wheeled scientist offers new clues about Jezero Crater and the lake it may have once held.
Posted inAstrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Exploration Gear & Tech, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Fossils & Paleontology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs
Evidence Of Hydrothermal Systems Discovered On Mars Using Perseverance
In the three years since NASA’s Perseverance rover touched down on Mars, the NASA science team has made the daily task of investigating the red planet seem almost mundane.
Posted inBiogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs
Confirmation Of An Ancient Lake On Mars Builds Excitement For Perseverance Rover’s Samples
If life ever existed on Mars, the Perseverance rover’s verification of lake sediments at the base of the Jezero crater reinforces the hope that traces might be found in the […]
Posted inAstrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Mars, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Confirmation Of An Ancient Lake On Mars Builds Excitement For Perseverance Rover’s Samples
If life ever existed on Mars, the Perseverance rover’s verification of lake sediments at the base of the Jezero crater reinforces the hope that traces might be found in the […]
Posted inAstrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Mars, Meteorites & Asteroids, Status Report
Mineral Indicators of Geologically Recent Past Habitability on Mars
We provide new support for habitable microenvironments in the near-subsurface of Mars, hosted in Fe- and Mg-rich rock units, and present a list of minerals that can serve as indicators […]