SHERLOC Archives

The Perseverance rover on Mars inspects a rock dubbed Cheyava Falls with the Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman & Luminescence for Organics & Chemicals (SHERLOC) instrument on its robotic arm. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Desert Worlds, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Missions & Hardware

Organic Carbon Detected In The Bright Angel Formation On Mars

by Keith CowingJune 25, 2026June 25, 2026

In September of last year, NASA announced that its Perseverance rover discovered a potential biosignature, which is a substance or structure that might have a biological origin.

(a) CORALS engineering test unit. (b) Schematic diagram of Fig. 1a illustrating key subsystems and components. (c) Ion optics simulation using SIMION® 8.1, showing a cut plane of the instrument. The brown structures show the geometry of electrodes, and red lines show ion trajectories generated within a 110-μm diameter circle centered on the optical axis. -- International Journal of Mass Spectrometry

Away Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Meteorites & Asteroids, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors

Chemical Imaging With A Spaceflight LDMS Instrument For Planetary Exploration

by Keith CowingMarch 10, 2026March 10, 2026

One of the analytical advantages of Laser desorption/ablation mass spectrometry (LDMS) is its potential for spatially-resolved composition analysis of solid samples, supporting 2D chemical mapping and/or 3D depth profiling as […]

NASA's Mars 2020 Rover's SHERLOC Instrument, located at the end of the robotic arm on NASA's Mars 2020 rover. SHERLOC (short for Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman & Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals) is a spectrometer that will provide fine-scale imaging and use an ultraviolet laser to determine fine-scale mineralogy and detect organic compounds on Mars. -- NASA PIA23621

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors

Kerogen Detection in Neoarchean and Eocene Microbialites via Deep UV Raman and Fluorescence Spectroscopy Using a SHERLOC Analog Instrument

by Keith CowingNovember 11, 2025November 11, 2025

To date, the Mars 2020 mission’s deep-UV Raman and fluorescence instrument (Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman and Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals [SHERLOC]) has reported potential Raman detections of macromolecular […]

This graph displays data collected by NASA's Perseverance Mars rover from targets in a rock formation nicknamed "Bright Angel." Scientists later determined one of those targets, a rock nicknamed "Cheyava Falls" (second line from the top), contained a potential biosignature. -- NASA

Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Sample Return, Status Report

Mars Perseverance’s SHERLOC Finds Organic Molecules in Bright Angel

by Keith CowingOctober 29, 2025October 29, 2025

A potential biosignature is a substance or structure that might have a biological origin but requires more data or further study before a conclusion can be reached about the absence […]

NASA's Perseverance Mars rover generated this mineral map showing the presence of two minerals – vivianite (purple and pink) and greigite (dull yellow and green) – on the surface of a rock nicknamed "Cheyava Falls." -- NASA

Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors

Mars Perseverance’s PIXL Finds Vivianite, Greigite in Cheyava Falls Sample

by Keith CowingOctober 28, 2025October 29, 2025

The data helped scientists determine the rock contained a potential biosignature, which is a substance or structure that might have a biological origin but requires more data or further study […]

a, Orbital context image with the rover traverse overlain in white. White line and arrows show the direction of the rover traverse from the southern contact between the Margin Unit and Neretva Vallis to the Bright Angel outcrop area and then to the Masonic Temple outcrop area. Labelled orange triangles show the locations of proximity science targets discussed in the text. b, Mastcam-Z 360° image mosaic looking at the contact between the light-toned Bright Angel Formation (foreground) and the topographically higher-standing Margin Unit from within the Neretva Vallis channel. This mosaic was collected on sol 1178 from the location of the Walhalla Glades target before abrasion. Upslope, about 110 m distant, the approximate location of the Beaver Falls workspace (containing the targets Cheyava Falls, Apollo Temple and Steamboat Mountain and the Sapphire Canyon sample) is shown. Downslope, about 50 m distant, the approximate location of the target Grapevine Canyon is also shown. In the distance, at the southern side of Neretva Vallis, the Masonic Temple outcrop area is just visible. Mastcam-Z enhanced colour RGB cylindrical projection mosaic from sol 1178, sequence IDs zcam09219 and zcam09220, acquired at 63-mm focal length. A flyover of this area is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FAYABW-c_Q. Scale bars (white), 100 m (a), 50 m (b, top) and 50 cm (b, bottom left). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/MSSS.

Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs

Potential Biosignatures Found In An Ancient Mars Lake

by Keith CowingSeptember 11, 2025September 18, 2025

A new study suggests a habitable past and signs of ancient microbial processes on Mars – and Imperial scientists provided crucial context.

Mineralogical map of Jezero crater explored by the Perseverance rover. This mineral map was created from near-infrared (1-2.6 µm) CRISM imagery (Parente et al., 2021) using recently developed technologies (Itoh et al., 2021; Saranathan et al., 2021) and overlain on High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE ) imagery. The basaltic rocks at the landing site are dominated by the minerals olivine (red) and pyroxene (tan). Further west, in regions called the Western Fan and Margin Unit, sedimentary rocks predominate. Smectite clay minerals rich in iron and magnesium (light to dark blue tones) and carbonate rich in magnesium and iron (green-yellow tones) were formed through aqueous processes. Unusual iron phosphate and iron sulfide minerals were found at the Bright Angel and Masonic Temple sites near Neretva Vallis (Hurowitz et al., 2025). Other iron phosphate minerals were observed at the Onahu site in the Western Fan region. Credit M. Parente

Analog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Habitable Zones, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Origin & Evolution of Life, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs

Perseverance Rover Uncovers Clues To Ancient Martian Chemistry

by Keith CowingSeptember 11, 2025

NASA’s Perseverance Rover spent three years exploring the floor of Jezero Crater, located just north of the Martian equator.

NASA’s Perseverance rover uses an abrading bit to get below the surface of a rocky outcrop nicknamed “Kenmore” on June 10. The eight images that make up this video were taken approximately one minute apart by one of the rover’s front hazard-avoidance cameras. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Astrogeology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exploration Gear & Tech, Mars, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs

Perseverance Grinds Rocks On Mars For Science

by Keith CowingJune 25, 2025June 25, 2025

In addition to drilling rock core samples, the science team has been grinding its way into rocks to make sense of the scientific evidence hiding just below the surface.

Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors

Improving Spectroscopic Detection Limits with Multi-Pixel Signal-to-Noise Ratio Calculations: Application to the SHERLOC Instrument aboard the Perseverance Rover

by Keith CowingApril 21, 2025April 21, 2025

Background The Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman and Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals (SHERLOC) instrument on NASA’s Perseverance rover is a deep ultraviolet Raman and fluorescence instrument used for organic […]

Close-up of the Perseverance calibration target. Along the bottom row are five swatches of spacesuit materials that scientists are studying as they degrade. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

Away Teams & Field Reports, Exploration Gear & Tech, Life Support Systems, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs, Space Physiology & Medicine

Away Team Tech: How Perseverance Is Helping Prepare Astronauts for Mars

by Keith CowingMarch 27, 2025March 27, 2025

NASA’s Perseverance rover landed on Mars in 2021 to search for signs of ancient microbial life and to help scientists understand the planet’s climate and geography. But another key objective […]