Perseverance rover finds igneous rocks in Jezero, 3+ waterings indicated
Technology
NASA's Perseverance rover has discovered igneous rocks in Mars's Jezero Crater, which means the planet saw water not just once, but at least three different times.
Scientists were expecting to find sedimentary rocks (the kind that might hold clues about ancient Martian microbes), so this twist is pretty big for understanding Mars's past.
Silica and carbonate highlight Jezero habitability
These new findings shake up what we thought we knew about how water shaped the Red Planet.
The rover's SuperCam studied more than 185 rock spots and found silica between olivine grains, while carbonate was detected by Mars orbiters.
All of this makes Jezero Crater a hotspot for figuring out if Mars ever had the right stuff for life.