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‘Hunt for water’: NASA’s Perseverance tries something never attempted before on Mars

Produced by: Manoj Kumar

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Rock Smashed

NASA’s Perseverance crushed Martian rocks to reveal untouched minerals—offering new clues on Mars’ ancient water, according to SHERLOC scans published in Science Advances.

Credit : NASA

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Sensor Repurposed

Instead of drilling, NASA used Perseverance’s contact sensor—meant to check surfaces—to flatten rock dust, creating a window into Mars’ hidden mineral layers, engineers confirmed in a mission update.

Credit : NASA

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Water Traced

Perseverance uncovered serpentine, a mineral formed when water reacts with volcanic rock—hinting Mars may have hosted subsurface water, Dr. Luther Beegle of NASA’s SHERLOC team explains.

Credit : NASA

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Life Questioned

Since serpentine on Earth makes hydrogen that powers microbes, scientists like astrobiologist Dr. Abigail Allwood believe these findings hint Mars could have once harbored life.

Credit : NASA

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Secrets Flattened

By pressing rock fragments, Perseverance exposed fresh surfaces untouched for eons—unlocking a new way to study Martian geology, NASA engineers revealed in their February mission briefing.

Credit : NASA

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Tools Bent

Perseverance’s engineers used a drilling sensor in a way never planned—proof, says JPL lead systems engineer Adam Steltzner, that creative risks are reshaping Mars exploration.

Credit : NASA

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Chemistry Exposed

NASA’s compacted rock fragments gave SHERLOC clear readings of minerals shaped by ancient Martian water, sparking new debate about how long water may have lasted on Mars.

Credit : NASA

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Rover Improvised

With traditional tools failing to give clear data, Perseverance improvised, using unexpected methods to analyze Mars’ dusty secrets—an innovation that stunned the JPL science team.

Credit : NASA

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Mission Shifted

Encouraged by results, NASA now plans to use this “rock smooshing” on older terrains like Witch Hazel Hill, hoping to crack deeper Martian history, per a NASA press release.

Credit : NASA