The Perseverance rover has collected Martian rock samples in two different ways, which NASA believes may contain evidence of extraterrestrial life. This effort has been ongoing since 2021, and rocks and sediments have been gathered from an ancient Martian lakebed.

NASA unveils a groundbreaking approach to bring Martian rock samples back to Earth by 2026, introducing competition between two strategic plans to enhance cost-efficiency and spark innovation. These Martian samples could revolutionize our understanding of Mars and the wider universe,

The agency is starting down two different paths toward the samples' return, but only one will bring the red rocks home.

NASA torn over two plans to bring rock samples from Mars: recreating a previous rocket method or getting a lander from a commercial company.

NASA will explore two different strategies for fetching Mars rocks collected by the Perseverance rover, and there's a chance these samples contain evidence of alien life.