Mars Sample Return Mission and the Search for Life in Jezero Crater

Join a seminar exploring the groundbreaking Mars Sample Return mission and the ongoing search for evidence of ancient life on Mars. Learn about Perseverance rover's exploration of Jezero Crater, an ancient lake-delta system with high potential for past habitability. Discover how the rover has collected 26 sealed tubes containing rock cores, regolith samples, and atmospheric samples from various locations within the crater. Understand the significance of these potentially first-ever sedimentary rock samples from Mars, particularly focusing on phyllosilicates, sulfates, and alteration phases that could contain trapped organic matter and biosignatures. Explore how these samples, planned for return to Earth by early 2030s, will enable scientists to use advanced laboratory techniques to investigate Mars' evolution and the possibility of ancient life. Presented by Sandra Siljeström from RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, gain insights into the cutting-edge methods used to search for organic molecules and potential biosignatures on the red planet.