Just last week, NASA’s Perseverance rover dropped some major news from Mars that has everyone talking. A tiny rock sample, dramatically named “Sapphire Canyon,” is showing tantalizing hints of what scientists call biosignatures. In plain English? Potential signs that ancient, alien life might have once existed on the Red Planet.
Perseverance snagged this promising sample from a rock in Jezero Crater, which happens to be a dried-up ancient riverbed. The fact that this area was once flush with water is a huge deal, since that’s a key ingredient for life as we know it. While this isn’t a smoking gun for little green men, it’s a massive clue.
As one NASA scientist put it, finding proof of past life would seriously “increase the possibility that some form of life has survived” underground on Mars today — a pretty wild thought to chew on.
Life on Mars?
So, does this finally confirm that life once existed on Mars? It’s a very good start, and the most significant lead NASA has found so far. Dr. Rench was clear on this point. “This discovery significantly increases our chances of finding ancient signatures of life at Mars. It suggests the possibility of life on Mars several billion years ago. It does not provide any evidence for life on Mars today.”
The data collected by Perseverance using its onboard instruments (X-ray lithochemistry and NASA’s SHERLOC scanner) was peer-reviewed and appears promising, but it doesn’t absolutely confirm life. More tests and input are needed for that, and the samples could have been generated from a natural chemical process without the presence of life. But scientists are excited about these signs and eager to learn more.
What kind of Mars life are we talking about? It’s not the sort that comes in peace, or goes much of anywhere. The possible biosignatures indicate small, microbial life. Sapphire Canyon showed signs of vivianite and greigite. Vivianite, in particular, is found on Earth’s peat bogs and swamps, while greigite is a byproduct some earth microbes leave behind. Think of this finding like a potential algae or swamp scum.
NASA is working on analyzing the data, running more tests and sharing the results with other scientists around the world to see what more they can learn. There’s a lot to rule out, from accidental sample contamination to the likelihood of nonorganic origins. That’s tough to do from millions of miles away, but NASA is on the case.
