Methane, Organic Molecules and Minerals on Mars found by Perseverance and Curiosity Rovers

On November 16, 2021 NASA declared that Perseverance Mars Rover detected greenish mineral olivine and Curiosity Rover previously found Methane on Mars after analysis of Mars Sample. Organic molecules contain carbon and hydrogen, and also may include oxygen, nitrogen and other elements. Organic molecules in 3-billion-year-old sedimentary rocks near the surface, as well as seasonal variations in the levels of methane in the atmosphere -- appear in the June 8 edition of the journal Science. Water-rock chemistry might have generated the methane, but scientists cannot rule out the possibility of biological origins. Methane previously had been detected in Mars' atmosphere in large, unpredictable plumes. New scientific results show that low levels of methane within Gale Crater repeatedly peak in warm, summer months and drop in the winter every year.

Credit: nasa.gov, NASA/JPL-Caltech, NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU

Source for Perseverance’s mineral olivine: https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/multimedia/raw-images/CCF_0271_0691022857_319ECM_N0080000CACH00105_01_295J

Source for Curiosity’s Methane discovery article: https://mars.nasa.gov/news/8347/nasa-finds-ancient-organic-material-mysterious-methane-on-mars/?site=msl

Source for Curiosity’s Seasonal Methane variations on Mars: https://mars.nasa.gov/resources/21900/mars-mysterious-methane/

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