Viking 1 kicked off the search for Martian life 50 years ago. Now NASA’s shifting priorities are putting the quest in limbo.

The key to solving the mystery of the Viking results is the discovery of perchlorate on the Martian surface in 2008. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

In a quiet corner of an ancient riverbed on Mars, a speckled rock has pushed the search for extraterrestrial life into its most tantalizing phase yet. NASA now says the layered stone, drilled by the ...

On Mars, it’s the little things that hint at past life. In 2025, tiny details in rocks across the Martian surface have revealed some of the most exciting clues yet that there may once have been ...

Mars once had sprawling river systems that rivaled major watersheds on Earth, and scientists have now identified the biggest ones for the first time. Researchers mapped 16 massive drainage basins ...

NASA's Curiosity Mars rover has discovered never-before-seen organic compounds that may indicate there was once life on the red planet. The nuclear-powered robot uncovered a diverse mix of organic ...