The search for life on Mars is not a novel topic for researchers or readers. This is the case with the Perseverance Rover, which has been exploring the Jezero crater on the red planet since 2020, looking for signs of life. Last year, 2024, the Rover collected samples from an area called Neretva Vallis, where it is believed a river flowed 3.8 billion years ago.
After analyzing them, the Astrobiology Center of Spain (INTA-CSIC), the University of Valladolid (UVA), and the CSIC Geosciences Institute determined that they were minerals associated with human carbon, but it has not yet been established whether they correspond to abiotic or biological geological processes. This research is up in the air, as after Donald Trump took office last January, the funding and resources allocated to NASA research have undergone numerous and substantial cuts.
Perseverance Rover
Launched in 2020, and also nicknamed Percy, it is a robotic vehicle designed and manufactured by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. It is part of the Mars 2020 mission of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program. Currently, it is traversing the Jezero crater on Mars, intending to search for signs of life on the red planet. In addition to ancient microbial life, it also investigates the planet’s geology, paving the way for future human expeditions. How does it do this? By collecting samples of Martian rocks and dust that will later be analyzed on Earth.
Update on the research
As we have mentioned, the search for life on the red planet is not new. However, since 2020 the Presence Rover has been exploring the terrain, specifically the Jezero crater. It is located in an area known as Neretva Vallis. Researchers believe that this area is key due to the theory that a lake emptied into it, depositing its sediments, more than 3.8 billion years ago.
New discoveries
During the year 2024, the Rover belonging to NASA collected samples in this region. After analysis, the Astrobiology Center of Spain (INTA-CSIC), the University of Valladolid (UVA), and the Institute of Geosciences of the CSIC have determined that these are remains containing small nodules of clay minerals, enriched with phosphate and iron sulfide. This type of compound is directly related to organic carbon, which means that its origin could lie in chemical reactions considered the basis of life.
Furthermore, researchers have been able to confirm when this occurred. According to them, it was after the sediments were deposited in the lake, under conditions of low temperature. That is why they consider them possible bio-signatures, that is, remains of chemical processes that could have been the origin of life on Mars.
Is this the explanation of the origin of life on Mars?
The answer to this question is no. Despite the new doors that these results may open, researchers prefer to opt for caution. In fact, they have clarified that these remains, which could suggest the presence of microbes, may also have been caused by abiotic geological processes, that is, non-biological.
How can scientists resolve their doubts?
According to researchers and scientists, the only way to answer the questions raised by this new discovery is to bring the samples from Perseverance back to Earth. This way, a more rigorous analysis could be conducted, and a bit more clarity could be obtained. However, NASA faces a serious funding and support problem from the United States government since Donald Trump’s arrival in power. We will have to wait and see how things unfold, or otherwise, wait for another country to carry out the research.
Discover the cuts that NASA is facing since Donald Trump came to power.