The Curiosity rover has been exploring Mars' Gale Crater for more than a decade, analysing the minerals on its surface.
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00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:03 We have this sandstone, which represents migrating dunes
00:26 deposited onto the side of it.
00:28 So they must be the youngest thing,
00:30 or one of the youngest things in the crater.
00:33 Within that sandstone, we find these structures
00:36 which cross-cut them, which are evidence of water.
00:39 So they must be one of the youngest things
00:41 to happen in the crater, which therefore means
00:44 we have these structures which were formed by water,
00:48 are one of the latest things in the crater.
00:50 Therefore, there must have been water more recently
00:56 within the crater than we previously thought.
00:59 [MUSIC PLAYING]
01:02 You understand that there was water
01:10 in Mars' early history.
01:11 But then as you go from the start of the Hesperian,
01:16 so 3.7 billion years ago, towards 3 billion years ago,
01:20 Mars dried out.
01:21 And that's round about the same time
01:23 that life evolved on Earth.
01:26 And we think that's round about the same time
01:29 that life could have existed on Mars as well.
01:33 And what we found by looking at these rocks
01:35 is that there was abundant water on the surface of Mars
01:38 much later than we expected.
01:40 [MUSIC PLAYING]
01:50 Similar conditions existed on Mars at the same time
01:54 as that on Earth.
01:56 And it would be reasonable to believe that life would
01:59 potentially evolve on Mars.
02:01 But then it would need more time to evolve into a state
02:06 where it could leave a impression in the rock record.
02:10 And by us identifying this water later in Gale Crater's
02:15 infilling history, it pushes back that window
02:19 where the opportunity that life could evolve and be
02:23 preserved in the rock record.
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02:38 (upbeat music)
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