2018 : ORGANIC MOLECULES ON MARS

The NASA Curiosity rover discovered organic molecules in Martian rocks. Organic molecules contain carbon and hydrogen. While often associated with life, organic molecules can also be produced by non-biological processes not indicative of life.

The organic molecules were found in sedimentary rocks believed to be three billion years old. They were found in the top five centimetres of rock.

The samples of rock that contained the organice moleules came from a core sample drilled into mudstone and analysed by an instrument called SAM which has an oven to heat samples to 500 degrees Celsius to release the organic molecules. The organic carbon concentration concentration measured was on the order of ten parts per million. The molecules indentified included thiophenes, benzene, toluene and smaller molcules like propane or butene.

In 2018, the NASA Insight space craft also landed on Mars. This lander carried the first seimometer to the Martian surface which enabled studies of the interior of the red planet as well as meteorite strikes on its surface.