Space & Astronomy

NASA's Mars rover finds out-of-place 'skull' rock in Jezero crater

By T.K. Randall
April 23, 2025

Image: Skull Hill Rock
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU / (PD) Trundle around on the surface of Mars long enough and you are likely to come across all manner of oddities - as further evidenced recently by the discovery of a strange, grey, angular-shaped rock by NASA's Perseverance rover during its explorations of Jezero crater's rim.

The rock, which is clearly quite dissimilar to the surrounding terrain, seems to have ended up quite far from wherever it originated and it remains unclear where it came from or how it got there.

The object has been designated 'Skull Hill' by NASA's Mars exploration team.

One possibility is that it, along with a few other similar pieces found in the area (and by the Curiosity rover in an entirely different region of Mars), could be the remnants of a meteorite impact.That said, a chemical analysis of other examples seems to suggest that this is not the case.

"Alternatively, 'Skull Hill' could be an igneous rock eroded from a nearby outcrop or ejected from an impact crater," NASA wrote.

"On Earth and Mars, iron and magnesium are some of the main contributors to igneous rocks, which form from the cooling of magma or lava."

"These rocks can include dark-colored minerals such as olivine, pyroxene, amphibole, and biotite."

"Understanding the composition of these darker-toned floats will help the team to interpret the origin of this unique rock!"

Source: NASA.gov

Tags: Mars