New Delhi: The Curiosity rover has found the best evidence yet that Mars was once a habitable planet.The rover made the discovery by collecting rock samples using its on-board drilling tool and analyzing them using its science instruments. What it found was that the rock contained clay minerals, a clear indication of the presence of neutral water. Ultimately the discovery suggests that at some point in the past there were at least some areas of Mars capable of supporting life as we know it.Scientists say the find is one more step towards showing conditions on the Red Planet in the distant past could have supported life.Many rocks studied previously were probably deposited in acidic water.While this would not have precluded the possibility of micro-organisms taking hold on Mars, it would have been more challenging, scientists believe.Identifying clays shows there were at least some locations on the planet billions of years ago where environments would have been much more favourable."We have found a habitable environment that is so benign and supportive of life that probably if this water was around and you had been there, you would have been able to drink it," said project scientist John Grotzinger.Scientists think Curiosity probably drilled into an ancient lakebed.
