NASA identifies 4.1-billion-year-old Martian meteorite discovered in Sahara
A rose-colored meteorite found in Mali in 2022 has been confirmed by NASA as a 4.1 billion-year-old fragment of Mars, offering new insight into the planet’s early crust and water activity.
NASA scientists have confirmed that a two-pound, rose-colored meteorite recovered from the Sahara Desert in 2022 originates from Mars and dates to about 4.1 billion years ago. The stone, named Teghaza 001 after the salt plain where it was found, is one of roughly 435 known Martian meteorites.
Chemical and mineral analyses matched the rock’s composition to data collected by NASA’s Martian missions, allowing researchers to verify its planetary source. Age-dating of a tiny grain within the meteorite indicated it formed during the early history of Mars, making it among the three oldest Martian samples identified on Earth.
"It was only after we started looking closely that we realized this meteorite is really unique," said Yang Liu, lead author of the study and a scientist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
The meteorite contains a blend of volcanic minerals, including zircon crystals, that correspond to observations from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter in the planet’s southern highlands. Analysis suggests the rock interacted with water on Mars around 4.1 billion years ago, implying a more active early water cycle than previously thought.
"The rock records interactions of water and rock and maybe even an imprint of the Martian atmosphere as it was losing water," said Lee Saper of NASA’s Ames Research Center.
Researchers used a novel dating technique that examined a fragment smaller than a fingernail, enabling precise study of individual mineral grains. The findings provide a new window into the formation of Mars’ crust and its early hydrologic processes, and scientists anticipate further investigations of the sample.