Curiosity Accidentally Breaks Open Boulder, Makes Monumental Discovery

Amaze Lab

Right now NASA’s Curiosity rover is still rolling around the Martian surface providing invaluable data about the red planet. Recently it accidentally broke open a rock while inspecting it, revealing a wild surprise.

Transcript

00:00Right now, NASA's Curiosity rover is still rolling around the Martian surface, providing

00:07invaluable data about the red planet.

00:10And recently, it accidentally broke open a rock while rolling over it, revealing a wild

00:14surprise.

00:15No, it wasn't the fossilized remains of an alien creature, unfortunately.

00:19But it was this, crystals of elemental sulfur.

00:23That might not seem like a big discovery, considering sulfates have been found on Mars

00:26before.

00:27However, experts say they have never seen sulfur in its purest form like this.

00:31NASA Jet Propulsion Lab scientist Ashwin Vasavada said about it,

00:35Finding a field of stones made of pure sulfur is like finding an oasis in the desert.

00:40Adding that it shouldn't be there.

00:41So now we have to explain it.

00:43So what could this tell us?

00:44Well, crystals like this form when sulfates mix with water, which eventually evaporates.

00:49This leaves behind pure sulfur.

00:51But it can tell us more about the water history on Mars.

00:54Something of extreme interest to planetologists.

00:56The rock that contained it broke as Curiosity rolled over it.

00:59Not surprising considering the rover weighs some 1,982 pounds.

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