NASA robot finds evidence of organic matter in Martian soil
The discovery of organic matter in the soil of Mars is extremely significant in the search for evidence of life on the red planet.
Perseverance rover robot on Mars - Photo Reproduction/NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
O Rover Perseverance, developed by NASA, made a discovery of great importance by finding organic matter on Mars. While few details have been released at this time, this discovery is especially relevant as the purpose of the rover, launched in 2020, is to look for evidence of life on the red planet. Information about this discovery was published on Wednesday (12) in the scientific journal "Nature", but specific details were not revealed. The previous year, NASA had already announced that the rover had identified signs of possible microbial life on Mars.
Found material
O material was discovered in Jezero Crater, where the Perseverance probe landed in 2021, indicating that the geochemical process of planet formation is more complex than previously believed. The region was a lake billions of years ago, and there are several prevailing theories that try to explain this discovery, including the interaction between water and rocks, deposits of interplanetary dust and even meteor collisions.
The instrument called SHERLOC has the ability to perform this analysis, allowing the mapping and detailed analysis of organic commands in minerals. In total, SHERLOC had 10 targets to be examined, and in all of them organic molecules were identified.
Aim
The purpose of the project is to better understand the formation and initial evolution of the stars, as well as to analyze the history of the geological processes that shaped Mars over time and to carry out a scientific interpretation of the planet's potential to have harbored life. This discovery followed a similar feat carried out by the James Webb supertelescope, which detected, for the first time in space, a carbon molecule, an essential component for the origin of life.
