NASA's Perseverance Rover Reaches the Dried-up Delta of an Ancient River
Delta was formed billions of years ago at the confluence of a river and crater lake. On its dried-up bottom remained clusters of rocks and prehistoric deposits. These are the best samples to study the emergence and demise of organic life.
The Perseverance rover has reached the dried-up delta of an ancient river, which the mission team called Three Forks. It is located at the bottom of the western part of the Jezero Crater, its diameter is 45 kilometers. The rover will look for traces of life in this part of the Red Planet.
The delta was formed billions of years ago at the confluence of a river and crater lake. Clusters of rocks and prehistoric deposits remained on its dried-up bottom. These are the best samples to study the emergence and demise of organic life.
Perseverance will save the most promising rocks in a special container, which will arrive on Earth at the end of the decade.