researchers from Purdue Universityin the United States, it turned out that the rover perseverance made the discovery of green sand on Mars – which, oddly enough, is called the Red Planet. The dark green hue is due to the mineral composition found on Mars, but it is also present on the beaches of Hawaii.

During the mission, Perseverance was able to examine over four billion mineral rocks found in Jezero Crater. There are abundant rock formations consisting of olivine. The rover’s landing site was chosen because of the history of the crater.

This is because it is considered extremely important to Mars explorers. The reason for this is that it is located in what is thought to be a river system when the Red Planet still had liquid water and air.

However, the research results presented by Perseverance showed that the scientists’ suspicions were not confirmed. Among the main assumptions is that the stones appear to be part of the sediments on the bottom of the lake near the rivers.

Photo: Farley et al./Disclosure

However, it has been observed that numerous stones are composed of hardened lava rich in olivine, which gave the site its green color. Alone, the rover was able to make a small scratch on the rock to collect samples, which were analyzed by Purdue University.

Material is also present on Earth

Interestingly, olivine is abundant on planet Earth and is not hard to find on Mars. Due to its volcanic origin, it is responsible for the dark green tones found on several beaches in Hawaii.

Even though they are present on Earth, there is a significant difference between the olivine materials found here and on the Red Slab. This is because those present on the globe are identified as being weathered due to billions of years of access to water, wind and life.

Meanwhile, the same type of material found on Mars ends up being easier for scientists to study and study. One of the points that would facilitate this study is related to the formation of volcanic lava in the soil, which is exposed only over time due to erosion.

Mars: Perseverance rover responsible for new discoveries in Jezero crater
Igneous rocks have been discovered in the region that will be important for future exploration of the red planet.

Via: Universe Today

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