In a new image from the surface of the red planet, the Mars rover Perseverance has discovered a mystery rock with a donut-like structure. The mysterious "donut" rock could contain smaller pieces that broke off after its crash with Mars, according to experts.The doughnut rock's origins are unknown for sure since NASA has not thoroughly analysed it using the Perseverance rover, which can sample the innards of rocks. The SETI Institute tweeted that "NASA Persevere took a picture using the SuperCam Remote Micro-Imager on 23 June 2023 of a donut-shaped rock off in the distance, which could be a large meteorite alongside smaller pieces."
Space enthusiasts, though, were eager to provide their own explanations for the origins and function of the mysterious doughnut rock. One user responding to the SETI Institute remarked the doughnut rock resembled a "alien toilet," while another added, "This points to flowing water." Simply said, a third Twitter user said: "Just say it!!! Mars has life there. Jim Rice, an assistant research scientist at Arizona State University's School of Earth and Space Exploration, said he couldn't tell with "100% certainty it's not a meteorite" but added that the possibility was "highly unlikely" in an interview with a source.
The reason I say that, he said, is that many of the rocks in the area we're in have hollow innards. The expert went on to say that the mysterious rock with the donut form was "not anything special" and may have just been weather-eroded. According to NASA, the Mars Perseverance rover is looking for indications of "ancient microbial life" on the red planet to help researchers determine if Mars was previously habitable. It has a unique drill to collect rock and soil samples from Mars, which will be kept in sealed tubes and brought back by a subsequent trip to the planet. Later, the tubes will be returned to Earth and put through forensic examination in NASA labs.
© Copyright 2023. All Rights Reserved Powered by Vygr Media.
