> At least within the precision limits of the Perseverance’s instruments, the material roughly matches terrestrial kerogen. Using the word “kerogen,” though, wa

> At least within the precision limits of the Perseverance’s instruments, the material roughly matches terrestrial kerogen. Using the word “kerogen,” though, was a no-go, the researchers decided. On Earth, kerogen is made almost exclusively of biological matter, mainly fossilized microbes that were buried millions of years ago. “The term kerogen implies biogenic source,” Murphy explained. “Macromolecular carbon implies we don’t know whether its origin is biotic or abiotic.” I'm pretty convinced the catchphrase "There's no Planet B" is imprecise. In fact there is a Planet B, Earth. Mars was Planet A[1], our ancestors came here billions of years ago, perhaps in a rock fragment full of organics like this "completely not shale". [1] https://badspacecomics.com/apostles-of-mercy https://badspacecomics.com/apostles-of-mercy Bad news is that if we screw the Planet B where our lineage took refuge after Mars dried out, there is no habitable Planet C left in the solar system.