In Jezero Crater’s distant depths, where an ancient river once flowed, the Perseverance rover has unearthed tantalizing clues of Mars’ watery past. Its collected samples reveal minuscule zircons, mineral archives holding whispers of billions of years ago when the Red Planet was a wetter, more hospitable place. However, the elusive secrets of Martian life, if any, lie sealed within these tiny fragments. To unlock them, NASA yearns to bring these precious samples home, where Earth’s most advanced tools can delve into their molecular depths, searching for the telltale signatures of life’s origins.
