Goa, June 27 -- NASA's Perseverance rover has discovered complex carbon molecules in Martian rocks, adding fresh momentum to the search for evidence that the Red Planet may once have supported life.

The discovery was made in mudstones at the Bright Angel outcrop while the rover explored Neretva Vallis, an ancient river channel that once carried water into Jezero Crater billions of years ago. Scientists used Perseverance's SHERLOC instrument to detect the organic carbon compounds.

Researchers identified the material as macromolecular carbon (MMC), a form of carbon that can be produced by living organisms but may also form through natural geological processes. As a result, scientists have cautioned that the finding should not be interpret...