New Delhi, Nov. 2 -- A rose-coloured meteorite discovered in the Sahara Desert in 2022 has turned out to be one of the oldest pieces of Mars ever found on Earth. NASA-funded scientists have determined that the 800-gram rock, named Teghaza 001, dates back more than 4.1 billion years and could offer important clues about the Red Planet's ancient crust and water history.

The meteorite was named after the Teghaza salt plain in Mali, where it was discovered. It is among roughly 435 Martian meteorites identified on Earth and is considered one of the three most ancient samples of the Red Planet found so far.

In a paper published in the journal Science on October 29, researchers presented an initial analysis of Teghaza 001, highlighting its unu...