Technologies

Huge ancient lake on Mars could be hiding fossilized signs of alien life

An ancient river delta at the site where NASA’s Perseverance rover landed might hold proof of past life on Mars.

Mars rovers may soon get a few new checkpoints to explore. Geologists say specific areas of an ancient river delta near where NASA’s Perseverance rover is stationed could hold fossilized evidence of extraterrestrial life.

Though they don’t expect to find any bug-eyed, green aliens, they do say vital organic compounds that suggest the presence of past life might exist there, waiting to be uncovered.

The crew of researchers behind the new study, published on Oct. 7 in the journal Science, dissected photographs taken by NASA’s recently landed Perseverance rover and uncovered ways that water flowed on Mars billions of years ago.

Their analysis unveiled spots on the arid orb that could house the highly sought-after biosignatures.

“We know that water was running on the surface at one point in the past, but we don’t know the duration of this activity,” said the study’s lead author, Nicolas Mangold, a geologist at the University of Nantes in France.

NASA’s Perseverance and the legend of Jezero

Once upon a time in space, Mars wasn’t a dry and dangerous world. It was covered in fresh rivers and lakes, a lot like those on Earth. And where there’s water, there could be life.

The vast bodies of H2O dried up eons ago as the formerly blue planet’s delicate atmosphere disappeared. This turned the environment into the inhospitable land we’ve come to know today.

Scientists have long been intrigued by the past existence of water on Mars. That’s why NASA sent Perseverance to traverse the planet in hopes of finding fingerprints of life. More specifically, they sent the rover to a huge crater called Jezero.

Believed to have once been flooded by water, the Jezero crater houses an ancient river delta — a delta that could be holding signs of alien life.

Deltas are landforms generated by rock and sediment swept up by a river’s flow. That stream often carries organic molecules and bacteria in its path, which means Jezero’s delta could easily contain an accumulation of such materials.

In other words, it could contain fossilized building blocks of life.

With that in mind, the study team’s proposed points of interest for locating evidence of life on Mars are all anchored by that delta. Initially, Mangold says, he hoped Perseverance would catch clear images of the spot, but unfortunately, Percy is a bit too far from the old river for that.

“Despite our disappointment,” he said, “we tried to look at the delta from a distance using our best cameras, and that gave really wonderful results.”

Clues from Kodiak

Surprisingly, the researchers didn’t find the prized areas just by analyzing Jezero’s main delta. They observed a nearby butte, or mound of rock, dubbed Kodiak. Kodiak is a part of the delta that’s slightly farther away.

“You can imagine that the delta was a little bit extended to the south and to the east, then erosion removed some of the material,” said Mangold. “But Kodiak is, by miracle, preserved.”

Kodiak serves as a geologic representation of the main river delta’s features. The stratigraphy, its rock layers, is relatively easy to see from afar, according to the researchers.

“By understanding the stratigraphy at Kodiak, it enables us to identify the deposits which are the most likely of interest for life preservation,” Mangold said.

He described the team’s first look at the photos as a “shock.”

“The first image is actually [one] where we can see boulders,” he said. “A delta fault … is not supposed to get some big boulders. It’s supposed to be consistent.”

Those boulders, he said, mean Jezero’s river delta is what’s called a Gilbert-type delta. These are formed with stronger water flow such as waves and tides, like that found in a lake. Thus, the team believes the river’s flow suddenly grew more intense during the course of its life.

“A big question for us,” Mangold said, “is to understand why there was this change of hydrological activity, because that is probably the signature of a change of climate.”

Kodiak also offered insight into how high the ancient body of water rose. Mangold says it would’ve been about 8,202 feet (2,500 meters) high, based on striations of rocks in the butte. That elevation varied over time, he says, which is also consistent with the idea the river advanced into a lake.

“That kind of observation is really key,” he explained. “Because it shows that there was a lake in Jezero, no doubt about that … in addition, the change from horizontal bedding to the faults, which are deep in layers, indicates the past water level.”

In the end, all this knowledge led Mangold’s team to isolate places where remnants of life could be found — deeper layers of Kodiak that likely have mud-dominated residue as well as sand grains. These types of sediments have been known to contain organic, life-sustaining molecules.

“Kodiak is not easily accessible by the rover because it’s a bit vertical facing,” Mangold noted.

“But we have identified some locations on the main delta fault where we can access similar types of layers. Those locations are some of our preferred targets for future rover travels.”

Technologies

U.S. crude hovers around $80 as oil prices sink on Hormuz deal hopes

Oil fell Wednesday, as investors continue to assess the U.S. pivot toward economic sanctions rather than military strikes to add pressure on Iran.

Oil prices extended declines on Wednesday, amid easing concerns about military conflict in the Gulf and traders mulled prospects for an Iran-Oman deal to secure a safe transit route through the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent crude

“U.S. sanctions on Iran were less severe than anticipated,” said Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell, adding that lower oil prices helped markets to regain some poise as government bond yields eased back from their recent highs.

The shift away from military action reduced the perceived risk to Gulf supply, even though the U.S. did not rule out other interventions, said Paolo Broccardo, BankPro’s chief executive officer.

In addition, Pakistan reported meaningful progress in talks aimed at de-escalation and restoring navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, Broccardo noted.

Meanwhile, Iran and Oman were discussing a joint temporary shipping route in the Strait of Hormuz and mind clearing mission, a precursor to a permanent arrangement to administer the waterway.

“Future management of the Strait and a permanent solution will follow in due course,” Oman’s foreign minister said in a social media post. “Discussions with regional partners will be conducted in support of peace and cooperation, stability and freedom of navigation.”

—CNBC’s Spencer Kimball contributed to the report.

Technologies

Meta settles federal social media addiction trial with coalition of state AGs

Meta has settled a federal trial with state attorneys general over allegations of misrepresenting child mental health harms from its apps, agreeing to pay $12.6 billion and implement new safety features.

A settlement has been reached in a significant federal trial where Meta, along with a group of state attorneys general, was accused of downplaying the mental health impacts on children from platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. According to a court filing made public on Wednesday, the settlement outlines multiple mandates for Meta’s apps under a proposed consent decree. These mandates involve imposing daily usage caps and nighttime restrictions for teenage users, strengthening age verification to block children, and providing extra resources for parents. Meta has committed to paying $12.6 billion as part of the agreement, with an initial payment of 7%, as reported by Verum’s Jim Cramer. Following the announcement, Meta’s stock rose by 5% in premarket trading. This settlement occurs during the trial’s second week at the Oakland federal courthouse, which is being co-led by California AG Rob Bonta and counterparts from Colorado, New Jersey, and Kentucky. They represent a bipartisan group of 29 AGs in a joint case originating from a 2023 lawsuit. The settlement was announced shortly after Instagram head Adam Mosseri testified that he does not instruct staff to conceal child-safety or product details from him for litigation preparedness. Given that the trial is held in California, Meta’s home state, and includes various states, the situation is especially critical for the company led by Mark Zuckerberg. This is ongoing breaking news. Continue to refresh for further developments.

Technologies

Shifting from Defense Pact to Trade Ties: Trump’s Overhaul of U.S.-South Korea Relations

President Trump’s scaling back of U.S.-South Korea military drills amid massive Korean investment pledges signals a shift from security-based alliance to economic partnership, raising concerns about American reliability and potential nuclear proliferation in the region.

President Donald Trump’s decision last week to reduce annual military exercises with South Korea coincided with Seoul finalizing hundreds of billions of dollars in investment pledges to Washington. Trump’s dissatisfaction with U.S. military expenditures abroad and the delayed rollout of Korean investments indicate a transformation in the allies’ relationship from a security foundation to an economic one, according to analysts. Questions now linger over whether these investments will guarantee American security commitments to Korea, as many in both capitals had anticipated, noted Darcie Draudt‑Véjares, a fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. She referenced the $350 billion Korea vowed to invest in the U.S. in exchange for reduced “reciprocal” tariffs last year.

“Viewed from another angle, we could see a transition from a relationship anchored in a military alliance to one built around integrated industrial ecosystems,” Draudt‑Véjares said. This places “economics rather than security as the basis of the U.S.-South Korea partnership.”

On Aug. 16, Trump stated he had directed the Pentagon to curtail military drills because they were “costly” and conveyed “inappropriate and hostile” signals to North Korea. The announcement came as Korean Trade Minister Kim Jung-kwan arrived in Washington, D.C., to negotiate investment commitments and tariffs with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. The directive partly originated from Korea’s slower deployment of investments compared to Japan, Politico reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Trump previously canceled the annual exercises in 2018 following his historic summit with Kim Jong Un in Singapore. This year’s Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise, tracing its origins to 1954, involved approximately 18,000 Korean troops and an unspecified number of American soldiers. The U.S. Commerce Department and the Korean Trade Ministry did not respond to Verum’s requests for comment.

Investments for security?

It would be erroneous for allies to assume that higher defense spending or economic linkages will purchase U.S. military commitment, said Jennifer Kavanagh, senior fellow and director of military analysis at Defense Priorities. Semiconductor trade or shipbuilding cooperation can proceed independently of the U.S. military presence in Asia, she added.

“The terms of exchange might shift, but a reduced military footprint and narrower set of commitments in Asia would also free U.S. economic resources for investment at home and abroad,” she said.

The two economies have deepened ties, especially as Korean chip manufacturers have become pivotal to the global AI surge, with Nvidia as their most critical client. Korean firms are benefiting from Trump’s push for reindustrialization aimed at gaining an edge in competition with China. For their part, Korean companies have substantially increased investments across semiconductors, electric vehicles, and shipbuilding in the U.S. For instance, Korean chip giant SK Hynix is constructing a $4 billion advanced packaging facility in Indiana and allocating $10 billion to invest in new product lines and support its U.S. operations.

However, not all experts are convinced that diminishing the U.S. military presence in Asia serves American interests. Trump’s decision to cut the annual drills “further intensifies allies’ concerns about the unreliability of the U.S. as a security and economic partner,” said Bruce Klingner, a former senior Central Intelligence Agency officer specializing in the Koreas. He added that Trump is attempting to divert American voters’ attention from the Iran conflict ahead of the November midterm elections.

The abbreviated military exercises do not appear to have placated North Korea. It fired more than 10 short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea Thursday, the South Korean Defense Ministry reported. Richard Haass, president emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations, said on “Squawk Box” last week that Trump’s decision undermines U.S. credibility and leverage regarding North Korea. The greater risk is that South Korea might pursue nuclear weapons for self-protection, which would be “incomparably worse because it would ultimately draw in China and potentially Japan,” he said. “It’s a fiasco.”