X

Has Curiosity discovered organic compounds on Mars? (pictures)

NASA says the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite aboard Curiosity, which explores molecular and elemental chemistry relevant to life, has made a big discovery.

James Martin
James Martin is the Managing Editor of Photography at CNET. His photos capture technology's impact on society - from the widening wealth gap in San Francisco, to the European refugee crisis and Rwanda's efforts to improve health care. From the technology pioneers of Google and Facebook, photographing Apple's Steve Jobs and Tim Cook, Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and Google's Sundar Pichai, to the most groundbreaking launches at Apple and NASA, his is a dream job for any documentary photography and journalist with a love for technology. Exhibited widely, syndicated and reprinted thousands of times over the years, James follows the people and places behind the technology changing our world, bringing their stories and ideas to life.
James Martin
Screen_shot_2012-11-20_at_4.16.05_PM.png
1 of 7 NASA

What has SAM discovered on Mars?

NASA has made a potentially huge discovery on Mars via Curiosity's Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument, NPR reported this week. SAM is the rover's on-board set of chemical analytics tools, tasked with identifying organic compounds -- the carbon-containing building blocks that are the basis for life.

The public will likely have wait till early December as NASA repeats tests to conclusively confirm its still-secret findings. The news is set to be officially released at the next meeting of the American Geophysical Union, set for December 3 to 7 in San Francisco.

The SAM instrument suite consists of a Gas Chromatograph (GC), a Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer (QMS), and a Tunable Laser Spectrometer (TLS), as well as systems that manipulate and process samples. SAM can analyze gases, either drawn directly from the atmosphere or extracted from regolith or powdered rock samples by heating or chemically treating the samples. SAM will search for and characterize organic and inorganic molecules important to life on Earth, as well as information about the chemistry of past and present Martian environments.
707065main_Vasavada-1pia16199-43_800-600.jpg
2 of 7 NASA/JPL-CalTech

Curiosity scoops soil

Divits in the soil surrounding NASA's Curiosity rover seen here are where the robotic arm has dug up soil for analysis that includes testing for organic compounds by SAM. The fifth scoop, in the upper middle divit, was collected on November 9. Each sample is about 2 inches wide.
msl20101006_IMG_3098-br.jpg
3 of 7 NASA

Sample Analysis at Mars for Curiosity

SAM, seen here at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, is equipped to analyze samples of material collected by the rover's arm.

It is also the instrument that NASA is crediting with a potentially big -- but still unrevealed -- discovery.
PIA15100-SAM-at-GSFC-br.jpg
4 of 7 NASA

SAM Instrument at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

SAM is studying the chemistry of rocks, soil, and air as the Curiosity rover investigates the Gale Crater on Mars. SAM was built at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., where this image was taken.
PIA16100_Mahaffy1-br.jpg
5 of 7 NASA

Sample Analysis at Mars Instrument, with the side panels off

Part of the SAM instrument suite, which is analyzing the chemical ingredients in samples of the Martian atmosphere, rocks and soil, is shown here during assembly at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center back in 2010.
SAM_goals.jpg
6 of 7 NASA

Martian sampling

SAM is supported by a Sample Manipulation System (SMS) and a Chemical Separation and Processing Laboratory (CSPL) that include high conductance and micro valves, gas manifolds with heaters and temperature monitors, chemical and mechanical pumps, carrier gas reservoirs and regulators, pressure monitors, pyrolysis ovens, and chemical scrubbers and getters.

The Mars atmosphere is sampled by CSPL valve and pump manipulations that introduce an appropriate amount of gas through an inlet tube to the SAM instruments. The solid phase materials are sampled by transporting finely sieved materials to one of 74 SMS sample cups that can then be inserted into a SAM oven and thermally processed for release of volatiles.
SAM_drawing.jpg
7 of 7 NASA

Mechanical configuration of SAM

The illustration labels the mechanical configuration of SAM.

More Galleries

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera
A houseplant

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera

20 Photos
Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra
magic-v2-2024-foldable-1383

Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra

10 Photos
The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum
Samsung Galaxy S24

The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum

23 Photos
Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design
The Galaxy S24 Ultra in multiple colors

Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design

23 Photos
I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites
img-0368.jpg

I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites

34 Photos
17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About
Invitation for the Apple September iPhone 15 event

17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About

18 Photos
AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?
img-1599-2.jpg

AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?

17 Photos