Curiosity Rover Makes Unprecedented Discovery of Pure Crystals on Mars

The Curiosity rover continues to discover Mars, offering scientists on Earth with beneficial information concerning the geological composition of the Crimson Planet. Not too long ago, throughout considered one of its routine operations, Curiosity by chance break up open a rock that had an uncommon shock – pure crystals.

The Curiosity rover was launched on November 26, 2011, from Cape Canaveral, Florida. He has been on Mars since August 6, 2012, when he landed safely within the Gale Crater. Since then, Curiosity has continued to discover the floor of Mars, offering beneficial information to scientists.

Its mission is to discover the floor of Mars, study rocks and soil, and discover traces which will point out previous life on this planet. Curiosity supplies scientists with beneficial information that helps them higher perceive the geological historical past and circumstances on Mars.

The remainder of the article is under the video

The Curiosity rover has been exploring the Mount Sharp space for a number of months, the place many minerals have been discovered, together with sulfates. In response to IFLScience, throughout one of many journeys, the rover by chance break up a rock and located pure crystals inside. This sudden discovery attracted the eye of scientists as a result of the pure crystals may present beneficial details about the geochemical circumstances on Mars prior to now.

Pure sulfur has by no means been seen on Mars. And though sulfates include sulfur, there is no such thing as a clear connection between the formation of those molecules and pure crystals. Crystals of elemental sulfur kind solely beneath sure circumstances. None of them have been anticipated on this class.

Outfitted with superior analysis devices reminiscent of X-ray spectrometers, high-resolution cameras and chemical evaluation gear, Curiosity will proceed its analysis, giving us increasingly more detailed details about Mars. Discovering pure sulfur crystals is the following step on the way in which to understanding the mysteries of the Crimson Planet and discovering traces of previous life.

“Discovering a subject of rocks product of pure sulfur is like discovering an oasis within the desert,” Curiosity venture scientist Ashwin Vasavada of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory mentioned in a press release. be there, so now we’ve to determine it out. Discovering uncommon and sudden issues is what makes planetary exploration attention-grabbing.”