13 November 2019
Curiosity uncovers oxygen mystery on Mars
... the martian surface is to inhale the air around Gale Crater with its Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument and analyse what its made of. After a three year study – Mars years, not Earth. Three martian years equates to nearly six Earth...
08 June 2018
Curiosity discovers ancient organic molecules on Mars
... on the Red Planet. The organic material was unearthed in 3-billion-year-old sedimentary rock samples extracted by Curiosity’s Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite and then heated to 500 degrees Celsius to release its molecular constituents...
01 November 2021
Curiosity finds organic molecules in Mars sand dune
... environments in Gale Crater in search of organic compounds, primarily using its Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument. SAM is a suite of three instruments, including a mass spectrometer, gas chromatograph, and tunable laser spectrometer, designed...
09 March 2020
Organic molecules found on Mars could be consistent with early life, says study
... one sulphur atom. It is estimated that around 5 percent of organic molecules analysed by Curiosity’s Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument, contains organic sulphur. Sulphur is a nucleophile atom, meaning it donates both of its electrons to form...
