Evidence of life on Mars? NASA’s Perseverance robot discovers biological molecules

Organic molecules have been found on Mars by NASA’s Perseverance robot and could give clues that life once existed on Mars, according to a new study.

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Although this type of molecule has already been detected on Martian meteorites and in other craters, this is the first time it has been found in Jezero Crater, which is considered a potential place where it could have life, according to the Daily Mail.

However, this is not enough to allow scientists to say beyond any doubt that there was once life on the Red Planet, but this discovery leads them to believe that a complex system of carbon trading could exist.

“These results indicate that there could have been a more complex geothermal cycle than described in previous analyses on Mars,” we can read in the study, which was published in the journal Nature.

The molecules involved contain carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfide.

They are spotted using the cameras on the rover.

“Although it cannot be said with certainty whether Mars is habitable, astrobiologists believe that the diverse presence of biological molecules is very important for the possibility that the planet could support life,” notes study author Dr. Joseph Raziel Hollis.

The researchers say they can only confirm the source of these molecules if the samples are flown back to Earth for further laboratory analysis.