A meteorite that fell in Africa offers an “astonishing” discovery of Mars

Astronomers said recently that an analysis of a meteorite found in the African Sahara revealed the presence of water on the surface of Mars 4.4 billion years ago.

According to the British newspaper “Daily Mail”, the researchers came to this conclusion after analyzing the mineral composition of the meteorite from Mars, known in the scientific community as “NWA 7533”, since its discovery in 2012.

Analysis revealed traces of the oxidation process which may have occurred in conjunction with the formation of water.

This meteorite, which weighs 84 grams, fell in northwest Africa after a celestial rock was destroyed when it entered Earth’s atmosphere.

Astronomers knew water existed on Mars, but their time estimate was that it probably existed 3.7 billion years ago.

But the analysis of the new meteorite and the monitoring of its mineral composition, made the researchers reconsider, because the water was present 700 thousand years before the probable date.

And if there was no water on Mars before this new date determined by scientists, it is possible that the liquid appeared as a result of the interactions that accompanied the formation of the planet.

This discovery of water could serve the theories of extraterrestrial life.

In 2013, scientists estimated the age of the meteorite that fell from Mars to be 4.4 million years old, making it the oldest meteorite on the Red Planet to date.

Many may wonder how astronomers know that a particular meteorite originated on Mars.

And specialist researchers explain that they do this, thanks to a comparison with samples brought from Mars by a US space mission in the 1970s.

And the US mission, at that time, landed advanced devices on the surface of Mars to bring in samples for space study on Earth to reveal more on the Red Planet.