Even though we are learning a lot about Mars, there is still a lot we need to know. Since landing on Mars in 2021, the Perseverance rover has been exploring the Jezero crater, and now scientists have released a bunch of new research which could help us understand the planet's history and geology.
Rocks found on the floor of the Jezero crater are formed from cooling lava. It helps scientists to remember when the rocks interacted with water on Mars. One of the researchers said that it was huge from a sampling perspective. People are excited about the fact that we have evidence that the environment could have supported life after the rocks were formed.
The rocks we collected will tell us when the lake was in Jezero. The lead author of one of the recent papers stated that it was there more recently than the rocks that formed. When was Mars' climate favorable to lakes and rivers on the planet's surface and when did it change to the very cold and dry conditions we see today will be addressed by this.
Igneous rocks are great for understanding the history of water, but not so great for looking for ancient life. The best way to find evidence of life on Mars would be to look at the rocks that formed in the water.
The area of Jezero is currently being explored to find these rocks. Perseverance is collecting samples from the delta so they can be brought back to Earth to be studied in a future Mars sample return mission.
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