Overview

• Perseverance’s SHERLOC and PIXL instruments mapped organic carbon alongside redox‑sensitive minerals in Bright Angel mudstones in Jezero Crater.
• The signals include a Raman G‑band of organic carbon co‑located with ferrous iron phosphate (likely vivianite) and iron sulfide (likely greigite) arranged as “leopard spots” and “poppy seeds.”
• On Earth, similar mineral–organic associations often arise in microbially influenced redox gradients, though nonbiological pathways are still plausible.
• The Cheyava Falls rock shows no evidence of the high heat or acidity typically required for abiotic formation of greigite and vivianite, strengthening the case for further testing.
• Perseverance cached the Sapphire Canyon core in July 2024, and the team—following a Sept. 10, 2025 briefing—prioritizes returning it for laboratory analyses that rover instruments cannot perform.