Leopard Spots on Martian Rocks

Leopard Spots on Martian Rocks

Image Credit:
NASA,
JPL-Caltech,
MSSS,
Perseverance Rover

Explanation:
What is creating these unusual spots?

Light-colored spots on
Martian rocks,
each surrounded by a dark border, were discovered earlier this month by
NASA‘s
Perseverance Rover currently exploring
Mars.

Dubbed leopard spots because of their seemingly similarity to markings on famous
Earth-bound predators, these curious patterns are being studied with the possibility they were created by
ancient Martian life.

The pictured spots measure only
millimeters across and were discovered on a
larger rock named
Cheyava Falls.

The exciting but
unproven speculation
is that long ago,
microbes
generated energy with chemical reactions that
turned rock from red to white while leaving a dark ring, like some
similarly appearing spots on
Earth rocks.

Although other non-biological explanations may ultimately prevail,
speculation focusing on this potential biological origin is causing
much intrigue.