Rocky mesas of Mars captured by HiRISE camera

Mars has many rocky mesas. The above picture, captured by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera aboard NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO), shows rocky mesas of the Nilosyrtis Mensae region of the planet.

The image, taken on April 5, 2007, was part of a campaign to examine more than two dozen candidate landing sites for the NASA Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover.

Phyllosilicate (clay) minerals have been detected in this region by imaging spectrometers on the European Space Agency's Mars Express orbiter and MRO spacecraft. These minerals are crucial in the search for evidence of life on ancient Mars, as they suggest past interactions with water.

HiPOD: Rocky Mesas of the Nilosyrtis Mensae RegionSome day the capability may exist for precision landing and hazard avoidance, so a rover could be set down right next to rocky outcrops of interest for study. https://t.co/IfwLO3T4MFNASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona#Mars #science pic.twitter.com/sO72WbY7dR

— HiRISE: Beautiful Mars (NASA) (@HiRISE) April 6, 2024

NASA's Perseverance rover, which landed on Mars in February 2021, is currently collecting samples of Martian rocks and soil, which are meticulously sealed in ultra-clean tubes and stored on the Martian surface. As part of the Mars Sample Return campaign, NASA and ESA will send a lander and two helicopters to Mars to collect the stored tubes and bring them back to Earth for detailed analysis.

Scientists will study the samples with advanced tools and techniques not currently available on Mars. Analyzing samples directly on Earth allows for more precise and comprehensive examinations than what can be conducted by rovers on Mars, due to limitations in size, weight, and power for instruments that can be sent to the Red Planet.