Scientists using NASA’s Curiosity rover have discovered siderite—an iron carbonate—in the sulfate-rich rocks of Gale Crater, solving a long-standing mystery about Mars’ missing carbonates. This find p

In those drill sites, Curiosity detected deposits containing an iron carbonate material called siderite. According to Ben Tutolo, a University of Calgary associate professor of Earth, Energy, and Environment Studies as well as a NASA Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity Rover team, the data marks a major moment in the search for extraterrestrial life.

NASA’s Curiosity rover has discovered siderite, a carbonate mineral, beneath Mars’ surface—providing new clues that the Red Planet may have once had conditions suitable for life billions of years ago.