Mars Sample Return Stalls as a Rock That Could Rewrite Life’s History Waits in Limbo
A rock sample collected on Mars by NASA’s Perseverance rover may contain the strongest evidence yet that the Red Planet once supported life, but the path to confirming that possibility has become increasingly uncertain. The sample’s fate now hinges on a politically fraught, technically complex return mission that has been slowed by cost, redesigns and competing priorities on Earth.
