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A suspected volcano (circled) is close to the large Jezero crater on Mars<\/p>\n
NASA\/JPL\/MSSS\/JHUAPL\/ESA\/DLR\/FU Berlin\/Aster Cowart<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n
A volcano seems to have been identified near the rim of Jezero crater on Mars, which is being explored by NASA\u2019s Perseverance rover. The vehicle may have already sampled material spewed out by ancient eruptions.<\/p>\n
Perseverance landed in Jezero crater in 2021 and has gradually made its way to the western rim, driving up a dried-up river, which is thought to have flowed about 3 to 4 billion years ago.<\/p>\n
The rover has been collecting samples that were intended to be returned to Earth as part of the Mars Sample Return mission in the 2030s, although that is now threatened by the Trump administration\u2019s proposed sweeping cuts at NASA.<\/p>\n
Some of the material in the samples was thought to have been volcanic, including signs of lava flows. Now, James Wray at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta and his colleagues have found a possible source \u2013 a dormant volcano on the south-eastern rim of Jezero named Jezero Mons.<\/p>\n
High-resolution imagery from Mars orbiters have revealed fine-grained material on the mountain, consistent with ash from a volcano. The size and shape of Jezero Mons \u2013 21 kilometres wide and two kilometres tall \u2013 also matches similar volcanoes on Earth.<\/p>\n
\u201cAn igneous volcano interpretation seems most consistent with the observations,\u201d says Wray, one fuelled by magma from below the surface. \u201cIt\u2019s the strongest case we can make without actually walking across it.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n By counting craters near the volcano, Wray and his team estimate that Jezero Mons may have last erupted as recently as 1 billion years ago, possibly flinging ash, lava and rocks into Jezero crater, even as far as Perseverance\u2019s landing site.<\/p>\n That means the rover might have collected samples from the volcano. If so, and if they could be returned to Earth, scientists would be able to precisely date the activity of a volcano on another planet for the first time.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019d actually know when that volcano was active, which would be very cool,\u201d says Briony Horgan at Purdue University in Indiana, who is part of the rover\u2019s science team. This could give us crucial information on \u201chow the interior of the planet was evolving over time\u201d, she says.<\/p>\n Even better, says Wray, would be driving Perseverance to the volcano itself, although that is unlikely to happen. \u201cThey\u2019re driving in the opposite direction, because there\u2019s really interesting ancient rocks outside the crater to the west,\u201d he says. \u201cI don\u2019t blame them.\u201d<\/p>\n Topics:<\/p>\n<\/section><\/div>\n