Curiosity Rover Discovers Pure Sulfur Crystals on Mars

NASA's Curiosity rover accidentally cracked open a rock on Mars, revealing pure sulfur crystals for the first time on the Red Planet, with a new study suggesting they formed from ancient volcanic activity.

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In a serendipitous discovery, NASA's Curiosity Mars rover has uncovered the first-ever pure sulfur crystals on the Red Planet. The find occurred on May 30, 2024, when the rover drove over a rock and crushed it, exposing fragments of sulfur crystals. Several days later, Curiosity used a camera on its robotic arm to capture a close-up image of the crystals, as reported by NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS. A recent paper published in Science proposes that the sulfur originated from magma deep beneath the Martian surface. About 3 billion years ago, fluids or gases released from this magma deposited sulfur on the surface, where it eventually crystallized. This discovery provides new insights into Mars' geological history and volcanic activity.