NASA is getting excited about a special rock that its Perseverance rover has just scooped up from the surface of Mars.
“This sample is a one-of-a-kind treasure,” the space agency said, referring to a rock known to be abundant in low-calcium pyroxene (LCP). This makes it one of the most fascinating samples of the mission to date, as it was taken from the sole site along the planned route where this low-calcium pyroxene area was identified from orbit.
A post on Perseverance’s X account described the sample — named Silver Mountain by NASA — as “unlike anything we’ve seen before,” adding that it’s sealed the rock core in a sample tube that will be transported to Earth for analysis at a later date.
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Now that I’ve completed my climb out of Jezero Crater, I’m back to #SamplingMars!
My 26th sample, known as “Silver Mountain,” has textures unlike anything we’ve seen before. I’ve sealed the rock core in a sample tube so it can be analyzed in labs on Earth in the future. pic.twitter.com/YqEPZnDnfR
— NASA’s Perseverance Mars Rover (@NASAPersevere) January 29, 2025
NASA called this particular sample collection “an important milestone in our mission to uncover the geological history of Jezero Crater.”
It also marks a return to full-time exploration by Perseverance after it spent the closing part of last year climbing up the side of Jezero Crater, which it’s been exploring since its dramatic landing there four years ago.
The six-wheeled rover took three-and-a-half months to complete the 1,640-feet (500- meter) climb, taking a few scheduled breaks along the way to carry out science observations as part of its ongoing search for signs of ancient microbial life on the distant planet.
NASA is currently considering the best way to carry out its Mars Sample Return mission, which will attempt to bring to Earth all of the material gathered by Perseverance during the course of its Mars mission. It’s a highly complex process, as it involves landing a spacecraft on the planet’s surface, collecting the deposited samples, transferring them to an orbiting spacecraft, and then getting them to Earth.
But a successful Mars Return Mission will allow scientists to study the Martian material in laboratory conditions, potentially revealing whether the red planet once harbored life, as well as telling us more about its geological history and evolution.