After finding and tasting the “leopard areas” of “Bright Angel,” it endedupbeing evident that Perseverance’s journey of discovery in this area was not yet completed. Approximately 20 sols (Martian days) after driving south throughout Neretva Vallis from Bright Angel, the rover found the enigmatic and special red rocks of “Serpentine Rapids.”
At Serpentine Rapids, Perseverance utilized its abrading bit to develop an abrasion spot in a red rock outcrop called “Wallace Butte.” The 5-cm size abrasion spot exposed a striking selection of white, black, and green colors within the rock. One of the mostsignificant surprises for the rover group was the existence of the drab-green-colored areas within the abrasion spot, which are madeup of dark-toned cores with fuzzy, light green rims.
On Earth, red rocks — often called “red beds” — normally get their color from oxidized iron (Fe3+), which is the verysame kind of iron that makes our blood red, or the rusty red color of metal left exterior. Green areas like those observed in the Wallace Butte abrasion are typical in ancient “red beds” on Earth and type when liquid water percolates through the sediment before it solidifies to rock, kicking off a chemical response that changes oxidized iron to its lowered (Fe2+) type, resulting in a greenish color. On Earth, microorganism