Exploring Mars: Perseverance Rover's Discovery of Unprecedented Rocks

 

The Perseverance Mars rover has made a stunning discovery in the past few days while roaming around the Martian surface. While taking a detour through Neretva Vallis—a now-dry riverbed that flows toward the Jezero Crater—to avoid particularly treacherous boulder-strewn paths, Perseverance made a marvelous find in geology during its fourth full-scale expedition since it landed on the planet three years ago.

The Perseverance, instead of getting the usual Martian scenery, crossed paths with a hill topped with boulders unlike anything seen on the Red Planet. Characterized as unprecedented by NASA, such boulders, with one noticeably different specimen named "Atoko Point," make for a striking contrast with Mars' usual rocky features.

"Atoko Point," a significantly lighter color in comparison to surrounding rocks, is about 18 inches wide and 14 inches tall. It looks so different from the darker rocks that surround it because it is made of pyroxene and feldspar minerals, giving it rather a volcanic origin deep under the surface of Mars.

The discovery of "Atoko Point" raises interesting questions about the geological history of Mars. It is assumed that ancient streams of water may have moved this stone to its present position, as supported by the distinct composition of the boulder compared with its surroundings.

As Katie Stack Morgan, Mars 2020's deputy project scientist, sank into the details, it became clear that "Atoko Point" was likely to belong to a kind of area called anorthosite. It may be new to Mars, but on Earth and the Moon, it is quite familiar. Predictions based on these results prove that martian and terrestrial geology share a rapport that is strikingly parallel, thereby hinting at a more complicated history of the planet.

NASA scientists are anxious to make more exciting discoveries regarding Martian subsurface exploration with the Perseverance mission, which will add much to their understanding of the geological evolution of Mars and its possible similarities to the old Earth crust. Continuing over the next several months, the rover will go deeper into the mysteries of the Red Planet.