Dr David Flannery from The Queensland University of Technology who helped build the analysis  software that led to NASA’s latest discovery stated “We can get the date of the surface of Mars for the first time”. This is because all volcanic rocks are datable, which can be used to trace back the history of the planet.

Besides this, the Perseverance rover has been leading the search for life on mars by gathering samples and analysing them with its built-in laboratory or saving them for return to Earth where scientists can study them with more powerful lab equipment. It holds 43 sample tubes, of which six have been sealed so far - four with rock cores, one with Martian atmosphere and one containing ‘witness’ material to observe any contamination that the rover might have brought from Earth. The perseverance rover is working in tandem with NASA's SHERLOC (Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman and Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals) to carry out the Multi-Mission Mars Sample Return campaign over the following years. This instrument has its own laser that can detect concentrations of organic molecules and minerals that have been formed in watery environments. Together, SHERLOC and PIXL produce high resolution maps of elements, minerals and molecules in Martial rocks and sediments that astrobiologists can review and determine which to keep.