Ines Evamy, 1 ESO

Nasa's Curiosity Mars rover has produced information that suggests that a crater on the planet once contained water which could have supported life.

Curiosity drilled a hole into the Gale crater and found fine clay minerals. Gale is a 90-mile-wide hole in the surface of Mars that was created when a meteor hit the planet about 3.7bn years ago. 
Scientists believe these minerals could indicate that a freshwater lake existed there for more than 100,000 years.  Experts say that fresh water is more likely to support life.

                                                                                            Curiosity Mars Rover on the surface of the Red Planet 

 

Sanjeev Gupta, from Imperial College London is a member of the Curiosity science team.  He has said "The presence of these minerals tells us the water was likely to be fresh water, which means it's much more conducive for microbial life. These rocks are similar to those we would find if we walked along the Dorset or Devon coast line".

Researchers believe that the conditions in the lake were suitable to support microbial forms of life that are found on Earth deep underground, in caves and at the bottom of the ocean. They survive by breaking down rocks and minerals for energy.