A rock discovered by NASA's Curiosity Mars rover contains "the most diverse collection" of the building blocks of life ever seen on the Red Planet, including seven never found there before, new research confirms.

In 2020, Curiosity discovered and drilled into the rock, which has now been confirmed to contain organic molecules that bear the life-friendly element carbon. While scientists can't yet prove if the molecules formed due to biological or geologic processes, their findings add new evidence to the theory that ancient Mars was hospitable to life.